Titan Shock
by DinoJake
Summary: Ever since all the Bang Babies were cured, things had been peaceful in Dakota. But that peace has been shattered by a new threat, one that wants to recreate the Big Bang! It's up to Static to face this new enemy, but he's gonna need some help...
1. Spring Break

The vast chamber was silent. Save, of course, for the massive, grinding gears. He had always been fascinated by gears, even since he was a small child. The way they just clicked together and spun in perfect harmony. The satisfaction that came from putting all those gears and screws and bolts into their proper places and get them all working. The only thing that was _more _satisfying was incorporating new gears into the works. At first glance, the system is so vast that it couldn't possibly fit any more. In truth, you could. You just have to know where that odd gear belongs.

"You've done well." he said. "Your training has progressed quicker than I thought. You have even more potential than I dared to dream."

"Thanks. So…..we ready to start phase two?"

"Indeed." he replied.

"If things are gonna heat up as much as I think, I'm gonna need a crew to back me up."

"I know just the people for the job." he said. "Some old acquaintances that I hired to run an errand once. I know where you can find them."

"What if they don't want in?"

"You're a charismatic individual. I trust that you can sway them to our cause."

"Alright. Just a heads-up, though. Next move is gonna be _loud._"

"…..I'm counting on it."

…

One Week Later…

…..

*RIIIIING!*

And with the end-of-day bell, Spring Break had officially begun for the students of Dakota Union High School. Virgil Hawkins and Richie Foley were just two faces amongst the hundreds that poured out of the school's gates, eager to begin a whole week off. While the other students were no doubt planning vacations, Virgil and Richie had more humble plans: Continue to safeguard the city of Dakota from crime as superheroes Static and Gear. Not terribly different from the norm, except this time they could do it without worrying about class or homework for the next week, which was vacation enough for them.

Not that Dakota really needed that much safeguarding, truth be told. Ever since the Big Bang cure was sprayed across the city, things had been fairly quiet. Almost boring, really. Turns out, a sudden decrease in supervillains does wonders for a city's crime rate. With all the meta-human criminals gone, that just left the regular ones, which were little match for Static or Gear, as well as She-Bang and Rubberband Man. With four superheroes on patrol and no supervillains around to level the playing field, major crimes in the city had taken a sharp decline, most criminals being too scared of Static and his allies to do much more than spray graffiti and gamble on the street. In fact, the last survey showed that Dakota currently had a lower rate of major crime than even Metropolis, the lowest it's been in over twenty years. Citizens were calling it a new golden age.

All the better for Virgil. Without the need to fight foes as dangerous as Bang Babies, he was free to kick back, watch TV, play video games, gorge himself on junk food, and stop the occasional petty crime.

"Yo boys." Shenice Vale greeted her two friends as she approached. "We still for the party at Richie's?"

"You know it." Richie replied. "The first night of Spring Break shall be dedicated to pizza and Monster Hunter."

"Er, I'm gonna have to bow out of that one." Virgil replied. "I mean, I'll gladly chow down on pizza, but I'm gonna have to skip the Monster Hunter."

"Aw, I thought you had Jaggi armor ready to go." Richie replied.

"Yeah, and it was a pain to get it." Virgil explained. "Sorry Rich. The monsters are cool and all, but I just couldn't get into it. Too much grinding and button-mashing."

"What?!" Shenice yelped. "Button-mashing?! Clearly, you never bothered to memorize a monster's every single twitch or read up on the best damage spots to- "

"Woah woah there, Shenice." Richie said as he deliberately positioned himself between his two friends. He turned to Virgil. "Word to the wise, NEVER call Monster Hunter a button-masher in front of Shenice. She's a switch-axe user so…..yeah."

"Ooookay." Virgil replied, pretending to half-understand what Shenice just ranted about. "Guess I'll just trade in the game tomorrow, maybe make back a little extra scratch. Maybe we could play Halo?"

"Ugh." Shenice replied with a roll of her eyes. "I _tried _to tell Richie he was wasting his time trying to broaden your horizons. Admit it Virgil; you can't stand a game that requires you to _think._"

"Whatever, hunter girl." Virgil replied as he threw up his hands in defeat.

"Okay, so!" Richie interjected, eager to move on from two gamers strangling each other over different tastes. "We all head to the warehouse, suit up, go on patrol, and meet back up at my place at seven. Don't forget your shock voxes in case you encounter something worse than your garden variety purse snatcher, and everything should go pretty smoothly."

…..

Soon after reaching the abandoned gas station they all used as a base of operations, Virgil, Richie and Shenice became Static, Gear, and She-Bang respectively. Gear divided the city into thirds, assigned a third to each of the heroes and thus they set out. Rubberband Man was absent, as he was recording a new album out of state, but he promised that he'd be back in town by Monday so he could spend Spring Break with Sharon.

Static smiled as he waved back to all the Dakota citizens who waved up at the young superhero. With crime in the city at record lows, Static found these patrols to be much more relaxing and even pleasant than they used to be. Granted, he had always found it enjoyable, flying through the air and performing tricks for the adulating crowd, but there was always a tension in the air. A small fear in the back of his head that a Bang Baby was about to spring up and cause mayhem. That tension was gone now, which meant that Static could now fully enjoy himself as he flew through the city.

*BOOM!*

Or not.

Static pulled on his saucer to slow himself down and bring himself about. It was an explosion. It was pretty far off in the distance, so it wasn't that loud, but it was the kind of explosion Static had learned to recognize from over a year of being a superhero. It was the 'supervillain breaking and entering in style' kind of explosion. It was then that he saw a pillar of smoke rise out of Dakota's industrial district. Specifically, one of the buildings owned by Alva Industries.

The company that created the mutagenic gas known as 'The Big Bang.'

Static felt a shiver go down his spine as he instantly feared the worst. As he sped off, he reached into his pocket and fished out his shock vox. "Gear. It's Static. We've got problems."

"Big ones?" Richie asked.

"Big ones." Virgil replied. "There's been an explosion at Alva Industries. I think someone's breaking in."

"…..You sure it's a break-in?" Richie replied after a pause. "Could've just been an accident."

"Then I should probably help out." Static said. "Either way, I gotta check it out. I'll call you and She-Bang if I need back up."

"We'll be standing by." Richie replied. "Over and out."

It didn't take long for Virgil to arrive on the scene. Alarms were blaring from inside the building, which Static accessed via the gigantic hole blasted into the side. Alva employees were running out of the building in a panic, but on-site security was doing a good-enough job getting everyone out, leaving Static free to investigate the source. He was in a massive chamber full of pipes, large silos, and other miscellaneous machinery, as well as the odd computer console here and there. Unfortunately, it didn't take the superhero very long to find the source of the explosion.

_Un_fortunately, because the cause now was absolutely supervillains, and flamboyantly dressed ones at that. A big tall hairy dude wearing big boots and black spandex, a skinny dude in a red jumpsuit, a guy with a helmet that made it look like he only had one big eye, a kid that was wearing something between a Batman and a Dracula costume, and finally a bald toddler wearing goggles and black pajamas. They were all standing in front of a large vault door.

"Yeesh." Static replied as he winced. "Never thought I'd miss Hotstreak or Ebon. Say what you want, but at least they had some decent fashion sense."

"It's that Static Shock feller!" the one in red shouted. Static rolled his eyes. Why do people always get that wrong?

"Get him!" the toddler shouted. Static could see now that he was typing on some kind of handheld key pad, but that was all he could see as the other four guys rushed him. The big guy was up first as he leapt high into the air and tried to bring his fists down on the teen. Static nimbly dodged it in mid-air though. However, the one-eyed one started shooting lasers at him from said one eye, forcing Static to run.

"Gear! I need back up!" Static shouted into his shock vox. "It's a supervillain break-in and I'm outnumbered!"

One of the lasers nicked Static's saucer enough to send him off balance and fall onto the floor. He rolled as he hit the floor and reoriented himself back onto his feet. He found himself staring down the one in the red jumpsuit. "How outnumbered are you?" Gear asked over the vox.

The red-clad villain then…..split. Into two. Then four. Then eight. And finally sixteen.

"I'm _way _outnumbered." Static replied.

"Hang in there! She-Bang and I are on the way!" Gear assured before signing off.

"Dog-pile on the super-zero!" One of the red guys cried out in a thick southern accent. The clones yee-hawed as they all jumped and dog-piled on top of Static, multiplying even more to make sure he was well and truly crushed under their combined weight. However, beams of white shone through the pile, which promptly exploded, sending clones everywhere. Static was wreathed in an electromagnetic aura, lightning bolts flying from his hands as he held them out and balled them into fists. He smirked as even his eyes seemed to glow with electrical energy.

Though he would be hesitant to admit it to anyone, even to himself, part of him had missed intense fights like these.

It was then that he felt a kick in his back. Grunting in pain, Static lashed out with a static bolt, but the target….teleported away, to on top of some kind of machine. It was the vampire kid! Static fired another static bolt, but the vampire ported away again, and again and again as Static tried to get a beat on him. It was then that Static got an idea. He ceased his assault, allowing the vampire to teleport closer and charge in for a punch. As the batkid closed in, Static reached into his coat pocket for some wire.

Just as the freak was in range, Static held up his hands, which were tangled up in a web of wire and gave it some juice. The wires glowed with all the intensity of a lightbulb, minus the bulb, right in the villain's face. The Nova Burst - an oldie, but a goodie. It stunned the vampire long enough for Static to fire a static bolt, hitting the loyal hot topic customer square in the chest and sending him flying across the room.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAARRRRRGH!"

That shout, accompanied by the thunderous footsteps, could only mean that it was the big guy's turn now. Static wheeled around and fired a static bolt at him…

Which didn't seem to affect him in the least. He grinned a toothy grin at him, and…..were those fangs? Oooooh, Static suddenly had a bad feeling. He fired another static bolt, but this one missed the hulking dude entirely. "Ha! Missed, shrimp!" he retorted in a low, gravelly voice.

"Look up." Static replied. The brute abided….

And saw a large metal crate that Static was holding up with his electrokinesis. Static slammed it on top of the big guy…

But then he caught it, and tossed it aside. "Nice try, but you're gonna hafta-"

*THWOP!*

And in came She-Bang hitting him right across the jaw with her patented double kick. The brute flew across the room and landed flat on his back. Static winced. THAT had to hurt. He's pretty sure he saw some spittle and a tooth fly out of the dude's mouth right there. Another victim of She-Bang's deadly foot size.

"Am I late?" She-Bang asked as she faced down the behemoth. The big guy eventually got up and spat out another tooth before glaring angrily at She-Bang, growling like an animal as he did so. The red villain took a spot next to him and multiplied into a sufficient fighting force.

"You're right on time." Static replied as he saw the vampire and the cyclops glaring at him, the latter's eye starting to glow. His fists glowed with electromagnetic power as the two heroes took off to fight their respective villains.

The vampire teleported right in front of Static and engaged him in fisticuffs. It became immediately clear that Static was outmatched by the vampire, as hand-to-hand combat wasn't his forté. He generated an electromagnetic pulse from his body, which knocked the vampire away. He fired a static bolt at his saucer to retrieve it. He needed to get back into the air to get back the advantage. It came to him and he hopped on seconds before the cyclops fired another laser at him. Static circled the cyclops as the one-eyed villain turned a dial on his helmet, switching his eye from green to yellow. Static fired a static bolt at him….

Which was deflected by a bubble shield formed around the villain. "Catch!" the cyclops yelled as he smacked the side of his helmet, launching the bubble at Static like a projectile. Static yelped in alarm as he dodged out of the way of the massive bubble, which exploded upon contact with the far wall.

Static felt someone bear-hug him from behind. A look over his shoulder revealed it was the vampire again. He must have teleported behind him. His gloved hands shot up to his neck and head, which made Static fear the worst. The hero instantly pumped hundreds of volts through his whole body to shock the dude off. The vampire was quick this time as he teleported away just in time, only to teleport back to kick Static off the saucer and back onto the floor. The cyclops grinned at him as he switched his eye back to green, which began to glow ominously. The vampire teleported next to him and wore a smirk. "We got you now, suckah!" the cyclops giggled maniacally.

It was then that a cluster of small explosions went off around the cyclops, knocking him back and making the vampire teleport away. Gear landed nearby, turning off his jet blades and throwing another round of zap caps at the two villains before turning back to Static. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah." Static replied as he got back up. "Been a while since I fought legit supervillains. Little bit rusty."

"I'll deal with these two." Gear said. "But the munchkin just cracked open the vault and headed inside. You need to catch up with him."

"On it." Static said as he hopped back onto his saucer and sped off to the vault. A cursory glance below revealed that She-Bang was holding her own just fine against the big guy and the Blue Collar Comedy Tour. She was smacking around red-spandex rednecks with a big long pipe in between laying a hurting on that muscled mullet. Content that his friends could hold their own a little while longer, Static flew off into the vault to find the toddler.

The vault was massive, with shelves upon shelves of beakers and vials filled with chemicals of every possible color. He eventually spotted the toddler…..wearing a jetpack? What? Anyway, he was floating in the air, aided by a jetpack, and searching through beakers. "Bingo!" he said as he held up a large beaker full of glittery, purple fluid. Purple like…..

_The Big Bang! _Static thought to himself. The last time someone tried to steal that stuff, it was to recreate the Big Bang and make more Bang Babies. No way he was going to let these freaks put Dakota through THAT nightmare again. "Yo! Pint-size!" he hollered at the short villain. The kid turned around and glared Static down as the latter's fists were wreathed in orbs of electrical power. "Drop the juice!"

"Not a chance, squid head!" the kid yelled back as a rocket launcher appeared from his back (seriously, where was this kid getting all this stuff?) and fired a…..blob or something at Static. He didn't know what it was, just that he was able to dodge it in time.

"Squid head? They're called 'dreadlocks' little man!" Static retorted as he fired a static bolt at the kid. It hit the kid square in the chest…..

And did nothing.

In fact, it made the kid's harness surge with power, prompting a snorting chuckle from the little brat. "Thanks for the super charge, crud-muncher!" he yelled as his rocket launcher fired again. Static could now see that it was goop, and instead of a blob, the launcher was firing a whole stream of the stuff this time. Static tried to dodge but he was too late; the slime hit him and knocked him to the ground. Even worse, it hardened and became like rubber. Static tried to shock his way out but, again, it was like rubber. His powers wouldn't do him any good now.

"Guys! I got the stuff!" the kid shouted as he flew out of the vault. "Let's get out of here! Billy, cover our escape!"

"Can do!" the guy in red shouted as he multiplied ten-fold and sent his clones after She-Bang and Gear. With Static incapacitated and his two partners preoccupied, the pack of villains had the perfect avenue of escape. They left the building and, a minute later, Static could see some kind of weird aerial vehicle lift off into the air; their ride, apparently. Gear was able to break free of the redneck brigade long enough to throw something onto the vehicle's hull, and a minute later, it took off. The clones promptly zipped out of existence.

Their foes gone, She-Bang and Gear walked up to Static, the former trying to tear at the stuff by hand to free the electrokinetic. "What happened?" Gear asked.

"Little guy got away." Static grunted. "They werehere for the chemical that caused the Big Bang. I saw the runt fly off with a beaker of the stuff."

"Oh no…." Gear muttered as he blanched. "Are you sure?"

"Positive." Static answered. "I'd know that shade of purple anywhere."

"I take it party at Richie's is officially cancelled?" She-Bang asked as she pulled off the last of the gunk covering Static and helped him up.

"Looks like it." Static replied. "We gotta get that stuff back before they do anything with it."

"Already ahead of ya." Gear said. "I threw a tracking device on their ride just before they took off. I'll know where they're heading in just a few minutes."

"Okay." Static said. "Let's head back to base and plan our next move from there."

"So much for spring break…." She-Bang sighed.

"Least we still don't have any class." Static said in an attempt at optimism. "I know I wouldn't wanna worry about a book report on top of a second Big Bang."

….

**Not gonna lie, it's been a while since I've enjoyed writing a fight scene that much. Seriously, my fingers were just flying across the keys while I had the original Static Shock theme music playing in my head. And believe it or not, I was able to pump out this whole thing in just one sitting!**

**And yes, dear reader, your eyes do not deceive you. DinoJake is officially entering the realm of Teen Titans fan fiction! Yes, I do feel kinda dirty. But let me explain!**

**As those of you who follow my tumblr may know, I'm babysitting my six-year-old niece a lot these days. One of her favorites shows is Teen Titans Go! and…the less said about that show, the better. But it did something right. It got me on a Teen Titans kick and, by extension, a DC universe kick. After a while of purusing TT fan fiction, I realized something.**

**There wasn't really any good Static Shock / Teen Titans crossover fan fiction out there. Least, not anything that caught my interest. This disappointed me, having been a fan of both shows in my early adolescence. And with both shows revolving around teenage superheroes in the DC universe…..come on. The fanfics practically write themselves. So then I thought - "Screw it. I'll write one myself." And as ideas turned into scenes, this bold experiment came to be.**

**Why do I say experiment? Because I'm gonna do something with this fanfic I've never done before - update it by a fixed schedule. Expect a new chapter every single monday from now until…I burn out, I guess. Why do this? A couple of reasons.**

**1\. Ask any fan of The Last Spartan. I REALLY need to work on pumping out fanfic chapters faster. So I'll be doing this to see if I could even accomplish a fixed schedule.**

**2\. I've only had this idea for the last few weeks or so. It's still fresh in my mind, and therefore exciting. So exciting that I often find myself pumping out an entire chapter in one day. It's a shiny new project so I feel like I'm excited enough to commit to it, at least in the short term. Hell, I'm already up to Chapter 4 of this thing, believe it or not. If I keep writing at this pace, I should be able to stay well ahead of the schedule.**

**So yeah. Teen Titans / Static Shock crossover fan fiction with a fixed update schedule. Will this work? Only time will tell. Stay tuned.**


	2. Runaway Thunderstorm

**By the way, quick shout-out to my long-time collaborator Zgamer for coming up with this fanfic's which was way better than the working title. The working title of this Fanfic was "Jump Start."**

**Get it? "Jump Start."**

**See, the Titans are in Jump City, right?**

**And a "Jump Start" is when you gotta give a car engine some extra juice to turn over.**

**And Static provides that juice. "Jump Start!"**

…**..**

**Yeah, Zgamer suggested I go with something simple and self-explanatory rather than a lame attempt at being a clever. Hence, Titan Shock!**

**Speaking of which, CHAPTER 2 BEGIN**

…..

By the time the three teenage superheroes arrived back in their base and changed out of their uniforms, Richie's fingers were flying across the laptop keyboard that was currently hooked up to Back-Pack, tracking the villains' movements. "Where are they now?" Virgil asked.

"They're heading southwest." Richie replied. "I think they're heading to Jump City."

"Jump City?" Virgil asked. "What makes you say that."

"It's where they're from." Richie explained as he clicked to a different window on his screen, one with a list of criminal profiles. "I did some facial scans on them during the fight and ran them through the super-criminal database. Gizmo, Mammoth, See-More, Kyd Wykkyd and Billy Numerous." Richie said as he pointed to each of their mugshots to show who was who. "They call themselves 'The H.I.V.E. Five,' named after the H.I.V.E. academy, which was basically a supervillain school where they learned the fine trade of scumbaggery. They're Jump City natives."

"Why do they want Bang Baby juice?" Shenice asked.

"Database says they're lower-tiered villains. Usually don't do much on their own aside from theft, kinda like Dakota's own Bang Babies back in the day." Richie explained. "Best guess? They probably stole the quantum vapor on someone else's orders."

"Who?" Virgil asked.

"Hard to say. They've gone through quite a few bosses over their supervillainy careers." Richie went on. "But I think it's safe to say that whoever hired them to steal the Big Bang sample CAN'T be planning something good with it."

"Then we _have _to go after them." Virgil said.

"What, you mean chase them?" Shenice asked. "That thing was movin' pretty fast. They're probably somewhere over Nebraska by now."

"Wyoming, actually." Richie corrected as he checked the H.I.V.E.'s position on the U.S. map.

"We already know where they're headed." Virgil explained. "We just go to Jump City and shut down whatever it is they're cookin' up."

"Well then, sounds like we'll be goin' on vacation for Spring Break after all." Shenice said with a wry smile. "I always wanted to go to Jump City. I hear it's _fantastic _this time of year."

"Once we get there, we should contact the Titans." Richie said.

"The who?" Virgil asked.

"Uh….the Teen Titans?" Richie tried. Virgil just shrugged.

Richie rolled his eyes. "You really need to stay up to date on this stuff, man." Richie said as he brought up the Titans' profiles. "The Teen Titans are Jump City's superheroes. Raven, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Starfire - "

"Hold up, is that _Robin_?" Virgil asked as he pointed to the photo in question.

"Yup. The Boy Wonder himself." Richie said. "Apparently he got tired of playing second banana to Batman and went off to start his own team of superheroes a few years back."

"With blackjack and hookers?" Shenice joked.

"Sadly, no." Richie replied. "But they've still got a pretty good superhero track record, up to and including going toe-to-toe with the H.I.V.E."

"So we go to Jump City, contact the Titans for a good ol' fashioned super team up, and be back in Dakota before school starts again. Sounds like a plan to me." Virgil said.

"Just a reminder, I can't fly, so we're gonna have to drive there." Shenice commented. "I wonder if I can convince my parents to lend me enough money for us to rent a car. If we're goin' on a road trip, I'm thinkin'…RV."

"Oh crap." Richie said as he slapped his forehead. "Our parents. Somehow I doubt they'll let us go half-way across the country to chase down a bunch of costumed criminals to stop their evil plans of world conquest or something."

"Relax Rich. This wouldn't be the first time we've been away from home to save the world." Virgil said. "We'll just tell our folks that we'll be going on a roadtrip to Jump City. Heck, I could probably talk my pops into driving us there himself."

"I could drive." Shenice interjected.

Virgil and Richie looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"Hey, I passed Driver's Ed." Shenice insisted.

…

"Sort of."

…..

"B is a passing grade, alright? Get off my back."

"Alright." Virgil said. "I'll try to talk my dad into driving us to Jump City. If I can't…..looks like you'll be driving, Shenice." Shenice gave her two friends a thumbs up that did little to reassure either of them. "Meanwhile, you guys tell your own parents that we'll be…..going on vacation with friends. I guess. We'll call each other later once we've all talked to our parents and plan our next move from there."

…

With everything planned out, the three teens left the gas station and proceeded back to their homes. They walked back home in their civilian attire, as three teenage heroes heading towards a certain part of the Dakota suburbs each day after patrol would be too big a clue to their secret identities.

Virgil walked down his favorite route home, through downtown Dakota. It's where you got to see the best of the city, its very soul. And these days, the city's soul was pretty joyful. Vendors on the street corner hocked Static and Gear merchandise to passing tourists. News reports covering the latest escapades of the super team played on TV screens in the display windows of electronic stores, young inner-city children gathering outside the windows to marvel at the heroes. There was even that one guy on the street corner who sang songs about Static on his accoustic guitar for spare change. Judging from the amount of Lincolns and Hamiltons in his open guitar case, the city was in a generous mood tonight.

Virgil couldn't help but smile at all this. It warmed his heart, knowing that not only had done the city a lot of good over the years, but that the city genuinely appreciated him for it.

As he stopped at a street corner and punched the crosswalk button, he saw a rather unwelcome sight. A little stand on the corner across the street to his left, where young volunteers were passing out college pamphlets to anyone who passed by and showed interest, especially those who looked to be in their late teens and early twenties. Virgil was seventeen years old, making him fresh meat to those people. It thankfully didn't take long for the crosswalk sign to flash go. He quickly marched forward, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding in once he was confidant that the recruiters hadn't noticed him.

Virgil's junior year of high school was slowly coming to a close. Just a couple more months until graduation, which meant that senior year was just around the corner, college was a little further down the road and a serious career choice awaited him on the other side of town. And son, that bus will get to those destinations a lot quicker than you think.

He knew that, because Robert Hawkins, Virgil's father, had been saying that convoluted metaphor for weeks now and frankly, Virgil was getting kind of sick of it. Yes, he knew that looking for and applying to a good college was something he'd have to do eventually, but did he really have to do that right now? He was still a junior, meaning he had _at least_ another six months before he really had to think about college. Couldn't he just cross that bridge when he came to it?

He wished he could say that he was too busy superheroing as Static to give his educational future much thought, but with crime rates in the city at a record low, his father had picked the exact time to bring up the topic where that excuse wouldn't fly. Damn his cleverness.

His father had been subtle about it at first. College pamphlets slipped into his comic books, wearing his old 'Dakota University' t-shirt around the house on his days off from work, stuff like that. 'Subliminal Nagging' as Virgil liked to call it. But as time went on, Robert realized that subtlety was overrated and launched into a monologue about the importance of thinking about his education, and future in general, sooner rather than later. He had done that monologue no less than four separate times now. Virgil swore that if the old man even _began _to go into that damned routine one more time, he would personally cause a neighborhood blackout just to give his father something else to rant about.

Suddenly, Virgil was glad that a bunch of super villains had committed a crime in his town that required him to go to Jump City. It might be a reasonable enough excuse for his dad to lay off the subject for a while.

It was approaching dusk by the time Virgil got home. He let himself in to find his father sitting on the couch, watching the news. "Virgil?" Robert asked as he muted the TV. "I thought you were gonna be at Richie's place tonight."

"Riiiight…there's kinda been a change in plans." Virgil began. "Turns out, we're _not _going to be doing that whole 'stay home and have a quiet Spring Break' thing like we planned. We'll be going on a Road Trip instead!"

"Where to?" Robert asked.

"Uh…..Jump City." Virgil hesitantly answered. He wasn't really expecting a warm response to the idea. Mainly because Jump City was all the way in California, which was a heck of a long drive from Dakota, Minnesota.

Robert gave Virgil a suspiciously neutral look. Not angry, or even mildly surprised, which put Virgil on edge. He unmuted the TV.

"-and Kyd Wykkyd." the reporter said. Virgil turned and saw a young female reporter with short black hair standing in front of the Alva Industries building where the fight earlier took place. "Police has yet to comment on supervillains from Jump City evidently operating in Dakota. And while Static, Gear and She-Bang were all on the scene, none of them have yet to comment on this turn of events. Alva Industries has also neglected to comment and police currently have the facility locked down. With no one willing to give answers, the citizens of Dakota grow more and more restless with each passing hour. For Channel 3 Action news, I'm Shelly Sandoval. Back to you, John."

Robert turned off the TV entirely. "Jump City, huh?" he asked his son, clearly able to put two and two together.

Virgil sighed in defeat. "Okay. Long story short, those guys broke into Alva Industries and stole a sample of Bang Baby gas. Richie threw a tracker on their ride, and it looks like they're headin' back to Jump City."

"You think they're gonna try to recreate the Big Bang?" Robert asked.

"Probably. But even if they aren't, whatever they're gonna do with the stuff can't be good." Virgil answered. "So….yeah. Don't suppose you mind drivin' me, Richie and Shenice to Jump City?"

Robert sighed heavily, removing his glasses and rubbing the weariness from his eyes. "It's cool if you don't want to." Virgil quickly said as he put his hands up. "Shenice can drive us."

"You're not going." Robert bluntly said.

"Okay, yeah you're right, Shenice shouldn't drive."

"No. I meant you're not going to Jump City _at all_." Robert clarified as he put his glasses back on.

"What?" Virgil asked.

"Jump City has their own heroes. 'The Titans,' they call themselves. They can handle whatever those villains are up to. You stay here." Robert ordered more than anything else.

"But Pops, they need my help!" Virgil argued. "I know the Big Bang better than any of them do! Not to mention these guys committed a crime in _my town_. I can't let that slide. It'd be bad for my superhero rep."

Robert sighed wearily again. He gestured to a seat next to him on the couch. Virgil winced as he felt dread fill his very being. He knew that gesture. It wasn't the 'have a seat' gesture. It was the 'have a seat because you and I need to have a serious discussion' gesture. Cautiously, Virgil took the offered seat next to his father.

"….Do you remember when they sprayed the Big Bang cure across the city a while back?" Robert asked.

"Course I do." Virgil replied.

"I was so relieved. Not just because it would mean no more Bang Babies. It would mean that you'd get cured too." Robert said. Virgil was shocked….no pun intended. His dad _wanted _his powers gone? "Ever since I found out you were Static, I worried myself sick every time you went out to fight those Bang Babies."

"I was a superhero _long _before you found out about it, Dad." Static pointed out. "By the time you did, I was pretty good at it. I could hold my own out there no problem."

Robert chuckled bitterly. "Yeah. That's what I told myself every time I watched you risk life and limb on the news. I told myself that to keep myself from worrying too much. Like I said, I was relieved when the cure was sprayed across the city. Heck, I was still relieved even after I found out you got your powers back and planned to keep them. You'd still be out fighting crime, but as far as anyone could tell, all the genuinely dangerous Bang Babies had been cured. That just left regular criminals, which I know you can handle just fine. I had thought that the worst was over."

He paused. "But now I'm finding out that a bunch of super-powered criminals have broken into a warehouse and stole some gas to create _more _super-powered criminals. And now you're gonna go off and fight _them_. It's the Big Bang all over again."

He shook his head as he hung it low, then looked back up at his son. "Is this how it's going to be, Virgil? How it's _always _going to be?"

"What do you mean?" Virgil asked.

Robert paused again. He took a deep breath. "This is something that's been on my mind for a while now." he began. "I acknowledge that you've done a lot of good as Static. Heck, I'm even proud. But the Big Bang is over. All the other Bang Babies have been cured. Hell, even the gangs from before the Big Bang only seem like a distant memory now."

"Yeah. Like you said, Static's done a lot of good." Virgil agreed.

"…..So perhaps Static's time has passed." Robert said after a brief pause of hesitation.

"Passed?" Virgil asked.

"Static was needed for a time, but that time is over. Been over for a while." Robert explained. "So maybe it's time for Static to hang up his costume for good."

Virgil was shocked for the second time that evening. "You can't be serious."

"You had to have known that it wouldn't last forever." Robert said.

Virgil narrowed his eyes at his father. "Is this about the college thing again?" Virgil asked as he developed a sneaking suspicion.

Robert groaned. "I wasn't going to bring that up, but yes, that _is _a factor to consider." he conceded. "How do you expect to have any time for studying in college when you're fighting super villains in your free time?"

"I've been able to balance out class and super-heroism so far." Virgil argued.

"That was high school." Robert countered. "Trust me, son. College is a whole other animal."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing that my superhero partner slash best friend _is _a mathematical and technological genius." Virgil wryly pointed out. "Can't ask for a better tutor than that."

"We're getting off track." Robert said. "You've reached that age where you need to start making some serious decisions about your future, and believe it or not, I'm _not_ just talking about education this time. You need to stop and think about _why _you're still Static. You need to ask yourself if this dangerous lifestyle you lead is really worth it."

"Oh, for crying out loud, I'm a _superhero_, Pops!" Virgil exasperatingly said. "I have _superpowers_! I've got an obligation to-"

"Obligation my left foot, you _chose _this." Robert interrupted. "You were cured right along with the other Bang Babies, and you could've _stayed _that way if you wanted. You could've gone back to a normal life. But no. You wanted to keep playing hero."

"I'm not playing!" Virgil snapped.

"The hell you're not!" Robert snapped back. "I've seen you on the news and out on the streets! All the tricks you pull mid-air like you're a blue angel! You _love _being a superhero! You _love _being in the spotlight! I think _that's _the real reason you still do it! It's because you love it so much that you don't wanna quit!"

"I help people!" Virgil shouted. "It's what I do! It's what Mom did!"

"And now she's dead!" Robert snapped.

Virgil was stunned by what he just heard. Robert's face suddenly went from angry to regretful. "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for." he quietly said as he bowed his head.

"Listen Virgil. Your mother was the type of person who ran towardsdanger rather than away from it, and she paid the ultimate price for that." he paused and looked at this son dead in the eye. "I'm worried that you'll wind up paying that very same price someday. This family already has one martyr. It doesn't need another one."

"You really think that's what's gonna happen?" Virgil asked.

"I'll be blunt. Superheroes aren't well known for their life expectancy." Robert replied. "Could be a supervillain. Could be a natural disaster. Could be tomorrow. Could be ten years from now. Bottom line - you'll likely die doing this. Is that really the kind of life you want?"

"…I'm going up to my room." Virgil said.

"Fair enough." Robert replied as Virgil began marching up the stairs. "But we're going to talk about this more tomorrow. As for tonight, I want you to really think about what I've told you."

"Don't worry. I will." Virgil coldly said as he reached the top of the stairs. He entered his room and slammed the door shut.

For a while, Virgil just stood there. Fuming. His hands balled into fists so tight, his nails nearly broke the skin of his palms. He couldn't remember the last time he was so angry. After everything he's done, everything he's been through as Static, his father honestly expected him to give it all up, just like that? All the villains he's defeated, all the people he's helped, and his father just dismissed it all. Robert talked about his powers and his alter-ego - hell, he talked about _Static himself_ \- like they were little more than tools that have outlived their usefulness. Virgil had never felt so…insulted.

He breathed deep, trying hard to compose himself. He didn't exactly succeed. It was then that he reached a decision.

Virgil started grabbing everything he could. Clothes, wallet, CDs, iPod, 3DS, posters, snacks, as many things as he could successfully stuff into his backpack. He then changed into his Static costume, opened the window, hopped on his saucer and flew out.

Screw Pops. He'd get to Jump City himself.

"V, you there?" Richie's voice came over the shock vox thirty minutes of flying later.

Static reached into his pocket and pulled it out. "Yo." he acknowledged.

"Bad news. Mom and Dad veto'd my 'road trip'. Same with Shenice. Any luck on your end?" Richie asked.

"Nope. But I'm flying to Jump City anyway." Static said.

"Woah, woah, what do you mean flying?" Richie asked.

"If Pops won't drive me, I'll just head there myself." Static explained.

"_You snuck out_?!" Richie demanded. "V, this isn't some party you'll be back from before your dad wakes up the next morning. It's gonna take you _at least _a day or two to get to Jump by saucer, and your dad is gonna wonder where you went."

"So?" Virgil coldly asked.

"So what am I supposed to tell him when he calls _me_?!" Richie blurted out. "Cuz you _know _I'm gonna be the first person he calls."

"Just tell him I'll be in Jump City by Monday." Virgil coldly replied. "With or without his approval."

"Okay. What happened?" Richie said. "I recognize your 'my father and I just had an argument' tone."

"Pops doesn't want me to be a superhero anymore. Well, _forget him_." Virgil seethed. "Static is on a mission to Jump City, and one way or another, he's gonna get there."

"Ah, I see." Richie said. "You're not sneaking out, you're actually running away."

"I'm not running away!" Virgil snapped over the vox.

"You're leaving your home for what will likely be an extended period of time against the expressed permission of your parental guardian." Richie replied. "What you're doing is _the exact legal definition _of running away."

"Whatever, doesn't matter anyway. We've got more important things to worry about right now." Static said. "I'll head out west and stay the night at a motel. Meet you and Shenice there?"

"Yeah, _no_." Richie replied. "First of all, I'm personally not really interested in joining you atop that lamb, and I doubt Shenice is either. Second, I've actually been rethinking the plan after watching the news."

"That so?" Static asked.

"Apparently, a lot of people in the city are freaking out that legit super villains committed a crime here for the first time in months. Back Pack's comm systems have been ringing off the hook. Dakota PD keeps calling me, asking what our plan is."

"Your point?" Static impatiently asked.

"My point is now might be a bad time for us to go on a road trip." Richie said. "With the city being as panicked as it is right now, maybe Dakota's favorite superheroes should stick around and give it a big hug and go 'there there Dakota, everything will be alright.'"

"I got a better idea." Static replied. "_You _stay behind and give the city a big hug. _I _go to Jump City."

"What am I supposed to tell the press when they ask about you?"

"Just tell them the truth. Static is going to Jump City to bring in the H.I.V.E. Five. You're in charge 'til I get back."

"Right. Hold down the fort while you go foil the big evil plan. Gotcha." Richie replied. He paused. "You know, once upon a time, my own dad and I had a pretty serious disagreement that made me wanna go on an unscheduled road trip. If I recall correctly, a pretty smart friend of mine told me that whatever differences I had with him, he was still my dad, and I had to work things out with him."

Static groaned. "For the last time, I'm _not _running away. I'll come back and work this out with my Pops _after _I stop the H.I.V.E."

"That's all I'm askin'." Richie replied. "Just be careful out there, V."

"Copy that." Static replied.

Static turned off his shock vox and stuck it back in his pocket. He pressed on. Past downtown Dakota. Past the city limits. He kept flying and flying until the sun went down. And then he flew some more. It had to have been midnight by the time he landed, changed back into his civvies in a bush, and checked into a nearby motel.

The trip would likely last another couple of days, but that was okay. He had enough money on him to last him till he reached Jump City.

…

**Okay, working out the timeline for this setting was a LITTLE bit tricky, particularly since there's no real time reference in cartoon land aside from the obligatory holiday specials. But here's the timeline as I see it for this fanfic - **

**Most of Static Shock's first season takes place during his freshman year of high school, with season 2 starting near the end of it. It's around Spring / Early Summer when he first meets Batman and Robin. Sometime after that, Robin gets sick of Batman's crap and goes off to start up the Titans the following Summer. The Robin that Static works with in the Season 4 episode "Future Shock" is Tim Drake, NOT the Dick Grayson he worked with before, as HE has started up the Teen Titans.**

**Both shows proceed as they do over the next two years or so (not even going to bother with exact dates for each season and major story arc). By this time, Static is approaching the end of his Junior Year of High School, and both Static Shock and Teen Titans have exhausted all their seasons, meaning this fanfic takes place after Static Shock's Season 4 and Teen Titans' Season 5 (including Trouble in Tokyo).**

***phew***

**Also, the comic series Teen Titans Go! isn't necessarily 'canon' in this fanfic, on account of my not having read them. I DO plan on taking a few elements from those comics (such as Sarah Simms), but I'll be treating them as guidelines more than rules. The Cartoons will take precedence in terms of continuity.**

**Next week on Titan Shock: DinoJake stops jerking around his audience and finally introduces the Teen Titans themselves! Stay tuned….**


	3. Welcome to Jump City

**Sorry for the slight lateness on this one. Rough draft was kinda bare-bones and I had to do some serious revisions to make this one presentable. Big thanks to Zgamer for the critique, it was a huge help.**

…

The next day was spent traveling. After eating a breakfast burrito from the motel, Static was off. He used the west-bound interstate as a guide at first, reasoning that once he came up on a truck stop or something, he could buy a map that would show him the way to Jump City. It didn't take long for him to find such a truck stop. After landing and changing clothes (a process that wasn't nearly as long or tedious as you'd expect - the benefit of experience), he walked into the rest stop to buy a cross-country map, a compass, and a few bags of snacks for the road.

As the store clerk was ringing up his map and compass, Virgil's eye caught something on TV. It was Richie on the news as Gear, being interviewed by several reporters. "Yo, turn that up." he said to the clerk. With a shrug, the clerk turned up the volume on the TV.

"Yes, you." Gear said, pointing to a reporter.

"When will Static return to Dakota?" the reporter asked.

"Once his investigation of the H.I.V.E. has been concluded." Gear answered. "Unfortunately, I cannot say at this time how long that will take, exactly."

"We understand that the H.I.V.E. has left the city since yesterday's break-in." another reporter asked. "Where exactly have they gone?"

"Classified information." Gear said. "Sorry folks, but I don't wanna say I know where the bad guys are hiding on national television. Seems tactically unsound. But what I _can_ tell you is that they're currently far away from Dakota, so citizens need not worry about that."

"What did the H.I.V.E. steal from Alva Industries?" yet another reporter asked.

"Not my place to say, sir. You'd have to ask Alva Industries." Gear replied.

"Dakota's citizens are suddenly questioning their safety in the wake of this incident, especially now that Static is no longer in the city. What do you have to say to these concerned citizens?" a fourth reporter demanded.

"All I have to say is this: _Relaaaaax_." Gear said, as though he were addressing a worried mother. "Rest assured, while Static is out hive-hunting, She-Bang, Rubberband Man and yours truly are still here and on the job. That concludes today's questions. I gotta jet." And with that, Gear activated his jet boots and flew off, leaving a swarm of reporters still hungry for details.

Virgil smiled. Richie had come a long way. He remembered when his best friend was little more than a cross between a personal inventor and personal cheerleader for Static. Now, he was a true hero in his own right, just as good as Static. It eased him, knowing that Dakota was in capable hands. It left him free to focus more on his own mission.

With all necessary supplies in hands, Static was back on his way. With no one to keep him company but the road, Static had nothing to keep him from thinking about last night. He still couldn't believe what his own father had said. When he first learned his secret identity, Virgil was a bit relieved for a while, like the weight on his shoulders was lightened a little. No more coming up with lame excuses for why he was home late or missed dinner. Pops would understand. Or at least, Virgil thought he would. But it seems he still doesn't understand that much.

Well, once again, Screw Pops. From now on, Static was going to do whatever he needed to do to get the job done, parental approval or not.

The road trip went as most road trips do. Virgil spent most of his time flying on his saucer, stopping only to eat, drink, go to the bathroom, or give his poor legs a break. Turns out, standing on a flying disc moving at over fifty miles per hour for several hours at a time was murder on the legs. He had several different podcasts on his iPod to help kill the time, but he wound up burning through them faster than he thought he would. After that, all he had left was his music, but you could only listen to your favorite playlist so many times before it becomes little more than white noise. He eventually stopped listening to it altogether, finding that he wasn't even really listening to the music anymore.

He had mostly used the interstate system as a guide, but since it wasn't a straight line, he also tried cutting across vast swaths of farmland and forrested terrain, using his compass to keep himself from getting lost. This, of course, did not stop him from getting lost once or twice, but he was able to regain his bearings soon enough. That said, he did have a bit of a run-in with a mother grizzly bear in the middle of the woods. Turns out, just outside a cave in the middle of the forest is a bad place to stop and check your position on the map. He pressed onwards until he stopped at a motel somewhere in Colorado.

He got up at 9am the very next morning, a whole three hours earlier than he normally slept on a day with no school. He needed the early start. According to the map, he was about halfway to his destination, which meant that if he hurried, he'd make it to Jump City by nightfall.

….

The second day of flying was much like the first, the only difference being terrain. Forest and farmland slowly gave way to prairie and hills. After nearly twelve straight hours of flying, Static finally saw the signs. Jump City, seventy-five miles. Jump City, fifty miles. Jump City, twenty-five miles. He could make out the silhouette of the city's skyline in the distance, the lights of the city like a beacon in the night, guiding him to his destination.

He let out a sigh of relief. After two days of nothing but flying, he had finally made it. Jump City. His journey was almost complete. All he had to do now was find the Teen Titans.

*BOOM!*

Which probably wouldn't be too difficult, if the explosion in the distance was anything to go on. Even from this far away, he heard it all. Energy beams and blasts shooting through the air, roars of righteous fury, evil laughter, and of course explosions. By now, Virgil was all too familiar with the sounds of a good old fashioned super battle. Willing to bet that he would find the Titans there, he flew off towards the commotion, which seemed to be somewhere in what Virgil guessed to be the downtown area.

The scene Static found was very strange, yet at the same time, not very surprising to someone who had been in the superhero profession long enough. Giant robotic-looking soldiers, each one easily over ten feet tall, firing big, laser weapons at meta-humans who had dodging and/or blocking lethal projectiles down to an art form. It was the Teen Titans alright. Static recognized them after seeing them in Richie's superhero database. The redhead flying through the air and chucking green laser bolts like baseballs was Starfire, while the other flying girl wearing a long purple cloak was Raven. Cyborg was pretty easy to spot being, well, a cyborg and all. He guessed that the green elephant one of the robot dudes was grappling with was Beast Boy. And there was Robin, the boy wonder himself, all grown up and leading his own crew, backflipping for days to dodge the incoming lasers. While they were easily surviving, they were also outgunned and out-numbered. Apparently leading the army of robot dudes was….some fat dude who really needed a hair cut? He was wearing a strange trench coat emblazoned with various medals and a peaked cap. He was laughing evilly. Static didn't know who he was, but he was gonna go out on a limb and say that he was the bad guy.

"Foolish Titans!" he said in a nasally voice that made Static feel like he needed a shower for some reason. Yup. Definitely a bad guy. "I, Control Freak, have once again demonstrated my superiority! By growing my own personal Warhammer 40K (sixth edition) miniatures to life and then growing them a thousand fold, I now have an army that will bring Jump City to its knees!"

"Miniatures? Really dude?" Static said as he flew into the battlefield, right behind the supervillain. Control Freak whirled on his heels and saw the Dakota Superhero floating in front of him. "Why do bad guys always take up the _dangerous _hobbies? Just once I'd like to fight somebody whose hobby was collecting stamps."

"_Static._" Control Freak hissed.

"Ah, another adoring fan I see." Static replied as he flew a slow circle around the villain.

"I _used _to be!" Control Freak said as he pointed an accusing finger. "Up until you _sold out _and became a _mainstream _superhero!" He turned to his soldiers. "Get him!" he yelled as he pointed a finger at Static.

"FOR THE EMPRAH!" one of the giant space marines shouted as several of them charged in Static's direction and began firing lasers at the super hero. By this point, Static was a pro at dodging lasers, and so nimbly flew around the projectiles and started zapping the soldiers….

Only to find that his electrical powers had no effect on them. "Nice try, Static! But my soldiers are made from plastic and are thus immune to your powers!" Control Freak shouted before letting loose his best evil laugh, nasally as all get-out. Dude was trying pretty hard, bless his little heart.

"Time to improvise then…." Static absently commented as he zapped a nearby chain link fence and levitated it, and then launched it at one of the soldiers, wrapping it up in it. The soldier struggled against the makeshift binding, then, through sheer strength, broke itself free.

"THE EMPEROR'S WILL SHALL NOT BE CONTAINED!" the space marine bellowed.

"Well, that didn't work." Static commented. He looked around for something else to use as an improvised weapon. He then spotted a construction yard down the street! Perfect! He flew over and zapped a pair of steel girders lying on the ground in the yard, levitating them into the air with his electrokinesis. He turned and saw three of the big space marines charging at him. Smirking, he swung his arms around, and the levitating girders swung in time. He smacked two to the ground, and crushed the head of the third one between the two girders. He heard a girly screech and looked back up the street…..

And saw Control Freak on his knees, a look of utter horror on his face. Wait. Was _he _the one who just screamed? "My Black Hole Chapter Space Marines!" he wailed. "Hours of painting and lore-writing! _Ruined_! You'll pay for this Static!"

Static payed him no mind as the two space marine he knocked down got back up, ready for more. They put away their laser guns and whipped out swords…..that started whirring like chainsaws. They both charged forward with chainswords brandished, looking to cut the Dakota teen to ribbons. Static raised the girders to block the strikes, but the chainswords easily sawed the girders in half. Disarmed, Static could only nimbly fly around the attempted swipes. He then got another idea. The space marines themselves were made from plastic, but what about their chainswords? He fired a bolt at one of them and, sure enough, it had enough metal to be affected enough by his powers. He ripped it from the space marine's hand and plunged it into the chest of the other.

"YOU'LL PAY FO THE BLOOD YOU'VE SPILLED, HERETIC!" the marine vowed as he pulled his sword from the gut of his brother.

"I ain't spillin' blood. Just ruinin' your collector's value." Static quipped. He quickly flew up, dodging the attempted swipe. He zigged and zagged as the frustrated marine tried to shoot him down with lasers. Static fired another bolt at a nearby streetlamp, pulling it up out of the ground and wrapping around the space marine, binding him. He zapped two pieces of a girder that had been sawed in half earlier, and bound them back together through a little of the old magnetic induction. The space marine eventually broke free of his makeshift bonds, only to have his head knocked off, literally, by a floating girder that was swung like a baseball bat.

"It's going…going….." he said as he saw the disembodied fly through the air. "It's gone!" He turned around…..

And had to dive out of the way as he saw a chainsword coming down on him. He rolled across the ground and landed on one knee, spotting his saucer on the other side of the street. His head darted up to see the space marine raise his chainsword…..

When it was suddenly assaulted by a flurry of green laser bolts. Reeling in pain and frustration, it backed off a few steps. Starfire landed between the space marine and Static, her eyes glowing bright green. "YOU SHALL DIE FOR YOUR INTERFERENCE, XENO FILTH!" the space marine said as it raised up its chainsword. Static zapped the sword and pulled it out of the maximum-sized miniature's hand.

"Oh, now that's no way to address a lady, chains for brains." Static quipped. Starfire fired green lasers from her eyes, hitting the space marine right in its chest, stunning it further. She then flew in close and delivered an earth-shattering punch that sent the marine flying way down the street and landing in a POP-TV merchandise store.

The redhead swirled towards Static. "Are you alright?" she concernedly asked as the green glow faded from her eyes.

"I've had worse." Static replied as he retrieved his disc with a static bolt.

"Who are you?" Starfire asked.

"Name's Static." the Dakota superhero formerly introduced himself. He wreathed a fist in electricity and smirked. "_I'll put a shock to your system_." What? It was a classic line.

The red-haired heroine gasped. "That is your catchphrase? I have one as well!" She went from joyful to serious as she whipped out a pair of pink shaded glasses and put them on. "I am the cool…."

She pulled the glasses down her nose. "_Shama-lama mu-mu._"

…

"…..My catchphrase is still the work-in-progress." Starfire shyly admitted as she put away the shades. The two heroes heard a thumping sound further down the street and turned towards it. They saw one space marine squaring off against a green ankylosaur, the creature smacking its clubbed tail against the space marine. The marine lunged and slashed at the creature with its chainsword, but it did little damage to its bony armor. Starfire gasped. "My friend Beast Boy is in danger!"

"Then let's go back him up!" Static said as he hopped aboard his saucer and took off. He zapped his magnetized girder and brought the makeshift club with him, Starfire flying right by his side. The redhead launched the first punch, stunning the marine. Static then tripped it up with a girder blow to its legs. Beast Boy was quick on the uptake as he morphed into a bird, flew up high, then morphed into a hippo in mid-air, landing on top of the marine's head, butt-first.

Beast Boy morphed back into his human form and smiled at his handiwork. "Thanks Star!" he said as he gave the redhead a thumbs up. "And thanks…..uh…" Beast Boy paused as he looked at Static. He turned back to Starfire. "Who's he?" he asked.

"His name is Static, and he is here to give our systems the shock!" Starfire excitedly answered.

Beast Boy looked at Starfire blankly. He then looked at Static.

"I'm a visiting superhero with electricity powers." Static elaborated.

"Oooooooh." Beast Boy said.

"Titans, regroup!" Robin yelled. The boy wonder back flipped over to where Static, Starfire and Beast Boy were. Raven rose out of a…..black hole in the ground? She was holding Cyborg with what Static was guessing was some kind of telekinesis, lowering him gently onto the ground. Cyborg's arm transformed into some weird gun and he aimed it at the stormtrooper rejects.

"Soooo…..are we just going to _not _talk about our new guest?" Raven asked.

"I'm-"

"Static." Robin interrupted the Dakota Youth's introduction. "I worked with him a while back. Long story, give you the details later, just know that you can all trust him." he quickly said as he readied three birdarangs, all held between his fingers. "Titans, Go!"

All six teenage superheroes charged. Beast Boy morphed into a T-rex and chomped on a space marine, shaking it around like a ragdoll. Cyborg and Starfire pressed the assault, opening fire with star bolts and sonic blasts. Robin threw his birdarangs, disarming the marines as the weapons struck their hands, making them drop their weapons and creating opportunities for the others to strike. "Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Raven cried as she encased one of the marines in an aura of dark magic. With a few hand gestures, she literally tore the marine into pieces, the disembodied head and limbs falling to the ground. She yelped in alarm as she just barely dodged a wave of flames.

"BURN, XENO WITCH!" the space marine yelled as he fired his flamethrower again. "YOU SHALL BURN FOR YOUR HERESY!"

"Looks like someone needs to cool their head." Static commented as he fired a bolt at a nearby fire hydrant. He positioned himself over it as he removed it, and angled his saucer to deflect the incoming spray of water at the space marine, dousing its flames as well as washing off some of the paint, something that Control Freak noticed if the preposterously girly scream he just heard was anything to go on.

"Last one." Robin said as he and Cyborg stared down the final space marine, the banner on its back billowing in the wind and its chainsword revving. "Sonic-Boom?"

"I've got the sonic if you've got the boom." Cyborg replied. Robin smiled as he readied an explosive disc and tossed it at the marine. Less than a second later, Cyborg fired his sonic cannon, detonating the disc in mid-air and bathing the space marine sonic fire. When the blast subsided, the space marine crumbled to pieces from the attack.

Meanwhile, poor Control Freak was rocking back and forth in the fetal position behind a mailbox, sucking his thumb. "My miniatures…my poor miniatures…." he wept. Eventually, he heard footsteps approach. He he looked up….

And saw six stern faces looking down on him.

"…..I was to be the God-Emperor of Man." he whimpered.

"Whatever, dude." Static replied. "Warcraft's better anyway." And on that note, he knocked Control Freak out with his taser punch.

…

It was only a few short minutes before the JCPD was on the scene. As the police threw Control Freak into a prison transport van, the five titans gathered before the newcomer from Dakota.

"Guys, this is Static. A superhero from Dakota." Robin introduced the electric hero. "He helped me with a Joker case a couple years back, back when I was still with Batman." He turned towards Static and offered his hand. "It's good to see you again."

"You've come a long way since your sidekick days, Robin." Static replied as he shook the boy wonder's hand. Robin's eye twitched a bit at that. Static made a mental note not to call him a 'sidekick' again. Dude probably hates it.

Once Robin released Static's hand, Starfire swooped in and shook it vigorously herself. "Any friend of Robin is a friend of mine! My name is Starfire, New-Friend-Static!"

"I'm Cyborg." the mechanized hero said once Star let go of Static's hand.

"Pleasure to meet ya." Static said as he shook Cyborg's hand.

"Beast Boy, at your service." the green hero said as he also took Static's hand and shook it. "And over there is Raven."

"…..Hey." Raven said, not moving from the spot where she was hovering.

"It kinda takes her a while to warm up to new people." Beast Boy whispered to Static as he let go of his hand.

"So what're you doing here?" Robin asked. "You're a long way from home."

"There's been an…'incident' back in my hometown a couple days ago, and I was hoping you guys could help me out." Static explained. "You know the H.I.V.E. Five, right?"

"The H.I.V.E.?" Robin asked. His smile disappeared, replaced by a scowl. "They've been off the radar ever since they escaped from jail. We were wondering when they'd become active again."

"Well, they were trippin' in _my _neighborhood two days ago." Static said. "They got away, but I'm willing to bet they're somewhere here in Jump."

"Upon what were the H.I.V.E. tripping?" Starfire asked.

"Ever heard of the Big Bang?" Static asked. Starfire shook her head, as did Raven, Beast Boy and Cyborg.

"I have." Robin ominously said. "Let's all return to the tower. We can go over all the details there."

…

Static had actually been in the batcave once, and it was amazing. It was full of momentos from Batman's previous fights against his many adversaries, as well as serving as the home to one of the most sophisticated super computers on the planet. But what stuck out most to Static at the time was the atmosphere of it. The atmosphere of absolute secrecy and solitude. Even though Batman had actually taken him into the batcave himself, part of him still felt like he was trespassing on holy ground. He had heard somewhere that Superman's lair, the Fortress of Solitude, was largely the same. It was remote, out-of-the-way, and only his most trusted friends and allies knew its location. It's why Richie suggested that an abandoned gas station next to a junkyard serve as their primary base of operations early on in Virgil's superhero career (Static recalled not being big on the idea at first. Mostly because of the rat infestation at the time). A superhero's lair, in Static's mind, was supposed to be out of the way, quiet, and above all, completely undetectable.

The Titans Tower was not a single one of those things.

For starters, it was located on a rocky little island right in the middle of Jump City bay. Second, it was a giant, T-shaped tower made of glass and metal. It had to have been at least ten stories tall, big enough to pass for a skyscraper. Unlike the Batcave, the Fortress of Solitude, and the Abandoned Gas Station, the Titans Tower made absolutely zero attempt to hide itself from the world, which to Static was a bit weird. Isn't that a superhero no-no? Might was well have a big ol' neon sign on it that says 'all super villains, attack this location to kill heroes in their sleep.'

"Yo Starfire." Static said as he flew up to the redhead. The two were flying back to the Tower, along with Raven and Beast Boy, the latter having morphed into a seagull. Cyborg and Robin had hopped into a weird-looking car and said they'd meet the others back at the Tower. "Can I ask something about the Tower?"

"But of course, New-Friend-Static." Starfire cheerfully replied.

"Don't you think it's kind of…..conspicuous?" Static asked.

"What do you mean?" Starfire asked.

"Well, I'm just saying it might not be a great idea to have your crib stick out like a sore thumb." Static said.

Starfire gave him a confused look. "I do not know what baby beds and digit injuries have to do with our Tower." she said.

Static gave her a confused look right back. "Um…I'm just asking if you guys are worried about possible super villain attacks." Static said.

"Oh no!" Starfire replied as the four of them landed on the Tower's rooftop. "Our Tower's defense systems are extremely sophisticated. Turrets, buzzsaws, crushers, only the very foolish would dare attack our home head-on."

"Not to mention the fact that attacking _any _place where five superheroes live is dumb. For obvious reasons." Raven added.

"Huh." Static said as he folded up his disc and placed it in his coat pocket. "Always figured that a superhero's lair should be more secretive, you know?"

"It was Robin's idea." Starfire said. "He said that it was important for the citizens of Jump City to know where we are, as it helps build trust between us and them."

"I'll meet you all in the ops room." Raven said. A black circle appeared on the ground and Raven…_lowered _into it, and the circle just disappeared.

"…..Did….did she just….?" Static stuttered.

"Yeah. She's a sorceress." Beast Boy elaborated. "A lot of her spells are kinda creepy. Like how she teleports by using portals through the Realm of Eternal Shadow or something like that. Don't worry, you get used to it."

"Come, New-Friend-Static. We must reconvene in the ops room." Starfire said as she eagerly grabbed Static's arm and dragged him through the roof access door.

After navigating a small labyrinth of hallways, the three arrived in the ops room of the tower, and saw that Robin, Cyborg and Raven were already there. It was a large and luxurious room with huge floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bay and the Jump City skyline, a huge flatscreen TV, and a semi-circle couch in front of it. A _comfy _semi-circle couch too as Static was finding out the delightful way. With the adjacent kitchen and bathroom, the ops room was a pretty sweet pad in and of itself. He was looking forward to seeing the rest of the place.

"Everyone here?" Robin asked. The Titans plus Static nodded. "Okay then." he said as he took a remote control and turned on the giant flatscreen.

Playing on the TV was police footage from the Big Bang. Static shivered as he saw the footage. That very same footage was all over the news in the weeks following the Big Bang. It never got any easier, watching all that violence. Eventually, the fighting and gunfire stopped as clouds of shimmering purple gas exploded outwards from the surrounding tanks, sending all those present into coughing fits as they inhaled the mutagenic vapor.

"The Big Bang was an event that occurred in Dakota two years ago." Robin began to explain for the benefit of the other Titans. "It started out as a particularly large gang battle by the Dakota docks, up until the police arrived. They fired tear gas grenades into the battle to try to break up the fighting, but the grenades wound up setting off tanks of hazardous biological chemicals owned by Alva Industries, releasing quantum vapor all over the area."

"I was there when it happened." Static said. "It's how I got my powers."

"You were part of a gang?" Beast Boy asked.

"No!" Static snapped in reply. "Well….technically no. Look, long story short, I got roped into something I shouldn't have. But I swear, I _never _fired a gun at anybody. Soon as someone handed me a gun, I chucked it into the harbor and just tried to get out of there in one piece. I was actually halfway over the fence by the time the gas got me."

"Static wasn't the only meta-human created by the Big Bang." Robin went on, bringing the discussion back on topic. "It created dozens of others, most of whom weren't as well-intentioned as Static. Remember, this was a gang battle, so most of the 'Bang Babies', as they were called by the local media, were already hardened criminals. They then proceeded to terrorize Dakota's populace up until Dr. Donald Todd devised a cure for their condition about six months ago."

Robin clicked a few buttons on the remote control, dismissing the footage and bringing up Dakota news reports of the last few days. "Fast forward to last Friday afternoon. The H.I.V.E. Five break into Alva Industries and steal a sample of Big Bang gas." the boy wonder turned towards Static. "What makes you think they're here in Jump?"

"My partner Gear threw a tracking device on their getaway vehicle right before they slipped away." Static explained. "They were heading west, and since they were Jump City natives, we could put two and two together."

"What do they want with this gas?" Starfire asked.

"Twenty bucks says they wanna make more super-powered bad guys." Beast Boy speculated.

"I'd take that bet. Big Bang: The Sequel." Static replied with a nod. "Don't suppose you guys know where I can find the H.I.V.E.?"

"We haven't heard from them since we put them on ice. Literally." Cyborg replied with a shrug. "Their attack on Alva was the first time they've officially resurfaced."

"I'll investigate this more later tonight." Robin said. "Search a few allies, interrogate a few thugs, see if anyone knows if the H.I.V.E. Five are back in town and what they're up to."

Starfire gave Robin a worried look, something that didn't escape Static's notice. The other Titans seemed cool with that plan, but Star? Definitely worried for some reason.

"In the meantime, I'm guessing you had a long journey to Jump, Static." Robin told the Dakota hero. He turned to Cyborg. "Cyborg. Get Static settled into one of the guest rooms. Looks like he'll be bunking with us tonight."

"You sure, Robin?" Static asked. "I could go with you."

"No offense, but I've been Batman's protegé since I was eleven." Robin said. "I'm gonna go out on a limb and say I'm better suited to working nights than you, Static. You should get some sleep. You'll need your rest for tomorrow."

Static thought about it, then nodded reluctantly. He couldn't deny that a long road trip followed by a super battle had left him a little tired. A good night's sleep sounded real good right about now. "Titans, dismissed." Robin ordered. And with that, the Titans went their separate ways off to their separate rooms.

Static followed Cyborg out of the ops room and down the hall. "Thanks for letting me crash with you guys." Static said.

"Don't sweat it." Cyborg said. "We get outside help once in a blue moon, so we keep a few guest rooms open just in case. So how long you plan on staying?"

"As long as it takes to stop whatever the H.I.V.E. are planning." Static replied.

"You kinda make it sound personal." Cyborg pointed out.

"I guess it is. They pulled a job in _my _hood." Static said. "Not to mention they're probably gonna try to make more Bang Babies with the same gas that made me. Feels like I should be doing something about it."

"You really think they're gonna try to replicate the Big Bang?" Cyborg asked.

"Not many other uses for a gas that gives you super-powers." Static pointed out.

"Well, don't worry. We'll find 'em. We'll even let you help." Cyborg quipped.

"Thanks. I feel so included." Static quipped back. They continued walking until they reached a particular door.

"And here is your room, sir." Cyborg said as the door opened. "We sincerely hope you enjoy your stay here at Hotel del Titan. Please do not expect continental breakfast before 11am, because none of us are up before then."

"Thanks again, Cyborg." Static replied as he entered the room and closed the door behind him. He paused as he took in the room. Being a rarely-used guest room, it didn't have much besides the essentials. A bed, a couple of chairs, a desk, and a window. The walls and floor were so clean that they almost sterile to him. Basically, kinda boring. Regardless, it would suit him just fine. He dropped his backpack on one of the chairs and flopped onto the bed, suddenly realizing just how tired he actually was. He pulled the covers over his body and drifted off to sleep.

….

**Okay folks, here is where things start getting interesting. We're only three chapters in, but I think you can already piece together what the big evil plan is - basically, it involves an army of meta-human criminals. Thing is, I need goons to fill the ranks, so I'm gonna do something that I've never done with any other story before.**

**I'm accepting Original Characters!**

**That's right, if you've got ideas for characters that I can have the Big Bad spray with quantum vapor to get an instant super villain, by all means, send in those ideas! Just be aware that they will be bad guys in this fanfic so…..yeah. I can't guarantee that they WON'T get punched in the face, star-bolted, electrocuted, smashed, afflicted by shadow magic, and/or have a green squirrel travel down their pants and bite sensitive areas. Occupational hazards, you understand.**


	4. Settling In

Static got up at about a quarter past eleven the next morning, more than a little grateful that he got to wake up at a decent hour for the first time in days. He climbed out of bed and headed into the bathroom down the hall. He did his thing, washed his hands and then headed to the kitchen on account of smelling bacon. Someone was cooking up breakfast.

He walked into the kitchen and saw Cyborg wearing a comically large chef hat and an apron that read 'kiss the automaton' as he beat batter with an electric whisk that sprouted from his wrist. Dude's got a lot of gadgets in him, apparently. The other four titans were sitting at the nearby dining table, making idle chitchat while Cyborg cooked up breakfast. Static noticed an empty seat at the table and took it.

"Mornin', folks." he greeted.

"And a good morning unto you as well, New-Friend-Static!" Starfire cheerfully said. "I trust your sleep was most restful?"

"It was definitely something I needed after two straight days of flying." Static replied. "Yo Cyborg, what are we having'?"

"Evil beware!" Cyborg triumphantly called out as he poured the batter into a waffle iron and slammed it shut. "We have waffles!" he shot the other Titans a big thumbs up.

"…..Make a sarcastic quip _one time….._" Raven muttered to herself.

As Cyborg tended to the bacon and eggs, Static looked around the table. Raven had her nose deep in some kind of book, Beast Boy was playing something on his 3DS, Starfire was checking her reflection in a compact mirror (and using it to get something out of her teeth), and Robin was holding something that reminded Static of an iPad, and was typing on it with one hand while sipping coffee in the other. It was then that he noticed something weird.

Raven was still wearing her cloak, Beast Boy his purple jumpsuit, Starfire her top and mini-skirt, and Robin was still fully decked in his uniform, mask and all. None of them were wearing casual clothes. "Question." he began. "How come you're all wearing your uniforms at the breakfast table?"

"Are you not wearing yours as well?" Starfire asked as she looked up from her mirror, a confused look on her face. Static checked his reflection in a salt shaker made from well-polished tin and, sure enough, he realized he was still wearing his mask and black undershirt.

"Huh. Must've been more tired last night than I thought." he said. "So beat, I didn't even change out of costume."

"Might want to wash it then." Raven commented without looking up from her book. "Before you start to smell like Beast Boy."

"Hey!" the green hero protested. He paused, then sniffed his armpit with a contemplative look.

"Well, there's my excuse." Static said. "What about all of yours?"

"Well, I don't know about the rest of the team." Robin said as he broke eye contact with the data pad for the first time that morning. "But personally, I stay in uniform most of the time because the Tower's crime alert could go off at any given moment. Time spent changing out of casual clothes and into uniform is extra time for the bad guys to seriously hurt someone."

"And as Robin is our leader, we have chosen to follow his example." Starfire added.

"Huh. Never thought of it that way." Static replied. The Titans really _were _dedicated to their duties if they had completely abandoned the notion of casual clothes. True, Static had gotten good at changing clothes in a hurry after two and a half years of being a superhero. Looking back though, he realized that there were definitely a few disasters that could have been avoided if he had been on the scene just a few seconds earlier.

"But what if you need to wash them?" Static asked.

"That's why we have spare uniforms, bro." Beast Boy replied. "I got like, a dozen other of these jumpsuits. So do the other Titans. I know for a _fact _that Robin has at least two dozen copies of his."

"They all broke into my closet and cosplayed as me once while I was away on a mission." Robin idly elaborated, returning his eyes to his data pad.

"…..Ooookaaaay." Static replied.

"I don't even have to worry about uniforms." Cyborg commented as he poured another round of batter into the waffle iron. "Technically, I'm a nudist."

"Okay, _that_, I straight up did not need to know." Static pointed out.

"For the record, it's not a _rule_ exactly." Robin pointed out. "We won't force you to remain in uniform 24/7 if you don't want to."

"…Actually, I think I'll give it a try for a while." Static said. "When in Rome, right? Though Raven's right, I'm gonna have to start washing this thing daily." he said as he gripped his shirt. "It's kinda the only one I got."

"Breakfast is served!" Cyborg said as he started handing out plates to all the Titans. Four waffles, two fried eggs and three strips of bacon on each plate, all lathered in maple syrup. Everyone else got the same breakfast, except for Beast Boy whose eggs and bacon kinda looked different from the rest for some reason. After a few minutes of eating, Static turned to Robin.

"So, anything last night?" he asked.

"Nothing." Robin replied after swallowing a mouth full of waffle. "Something's not adding up. No one has seen hide or hair of the H.I.V.E. Five. Not even after their break-in at Alva. It's like they can disappear, reappear, and disappear again at will. What's really strange is that they're not usually this good at laying low."

"Maybe they're working for somebody else?" Static suggested. "That's what my partner Gear back in Dakota thought. Maybe the H.I.V.E. does all the grunt work while the boss covers their tracks."

"That _does _seem to be the most likely theory." Robin replied. "Question is, who exactly are they working for? I'll redouble my efforts tonight. Admittedly, I only checked the H.I.V.E.'s usual hangouts. I see now that I'll need to start thinking outside the box to track them down."

"Must you do it all by yourself?" Starfire asked worriedly. "Perhaps I or someone else could go with you?"

"Don't worry Star. I'll be fine. I promise, I'll call you and the others if I need backup." Robin said as he put a reassuring hand on Starfire's shoulder. Starfire…..blushed?

…..Oh. Oooooooooh. So _that's _what's up. Static smirked at the sight as he put two and two together. Robin noticed Static's smirk and immediately took his hand off of Starfire's shoulder, a blush quickly spreading across his cheeks. He cleared his throat. "Apologies. Didn't mean to - "

"No no." Static said as he put up his hands. "It's cool. You and your girl were just doing your thing. Don't let me stop ya."

Starfire looked at Static quizzically for a moment, then turned to Robin. "Robin, what is the thing that we were doing?" she asked.

"Uh…..I'll tell you later, Star." Robin replied before clearing his throat. "Moving on. Seeing as this will likely be a multi-day investigation, it looks like you might be staying with us for a while, Static. In that case, I hope you don't mind doing a couple of patrol shifts while you're here."

"Sure thing." Static replied.

"Good." Robin replied. "You'll be with Cyborg today. Meet him in the garage at 4pm sharp. For everyone else, the patrol schedule will remain unchanged."

….

"And here…is the game room." Beast Boy said as he and Static entered the game room.

"Woah….." Static said, in awe of the wonders he beheld. Big screen TV, all three consoles, billiards table, foozball table, pinball machine, a really comfy couch, this room had everything!

"…..Best two out of three loser buys tonight's pizza GO!" Beast Boy quickly said before dashing to the foozball table.

"Hey!" Static said as he rushed after the changeling. Each young hero took a side and began to play furiously, wasting no further time on idle chit-chat. Static gritted his teeth. He was fast, but the little green dude just kept coming. Eventually, he got a good kick in (TOTALLY not a lucky kick, just wanted to make that clear) and scored the first point.

"I'm thinking…mushrooms." Static quipped.

Beast Boy glared at Static before dropping new ball onto the court. He then morphed into a giant octopus, using its multiple tentacles to hold all of the bar handles.

"Yo, that's cheating!" Static indignantly said as he found himself out manuevered by the green cephalopod. Beast Boy scored the second point, and Static could swear there was a smug look on that sea creature's face. Static then noticed that the bar handles were made of metal. _Two can play that game._ "Next game decides the winner." Static said.

BB dropped a new ball onto the court with one tentacle. As soon as he did, Static zapped all of his bars, which allowed him to use all of them at once to even the playing field. Like most foozball games, it devolved into a clacking fast that rendered strategy useless and all boiled down to whose reflexes were faster.

Eventually, Beast Boy was slowing down enough for Static to score the winning point. The changeling morphed back into his human form and gasped. "Should not have morphed into a water breather on dry land." he commented.

"Did I say mushrooms? I meant mushrooms, olives, cashews, onions…." Static began listing

"Yeah, yeah….." Beast Boy grumbled as the two walked out of the game room and back out into the corridor.

"Man. A game room, a garage, a basketball court on the roof, this place has _everything_." Static went on. Beast Boy had been showing him around the Tower for the last hour or so and the Dakota youth was just blown away by how much there was here.

"That's nothing. You should see our rocket ship." Beast Boy said.

"Ha! Good one." Static said. Beast Boy was suspiciously silent. "Seriously though, this place is like a _palace_. How'd you guys build it?"

"Cyborg knows a few guys in S.T.A.R. Labs. He was able to pull a few strings to make this place happen." Beast Boy explained. It was then that the changeling's communicator suddenly went off, giving off an odd, nine-note beep that sounds weirdly like a theme song. "Yo?" Beast Boy asked as he flipped it open.

"It's time for training, Beast Boy." Robin's voice came over the communicator. "Is Static there?"

"Right here." Static said.

"Good. You can participate in today's training. Give us all a taste of what you can really do." Robin replied.

"Meet you out there in a sec." Beast Boy replied. "Last one there buys the sodas GO!" he morphed into a cheetah and took off down the hall.

"Crap!" Static said as he took out his saucer, hopped aboard and did his best to keep up with the green creature.

After racing through the Titans Tower's labyrinthine corridors (Static lost, much to his annoyance. Beast Boy's still paying for the pizza though), they came to the back entrance of the Tower, which lead to the 'backyard' of the island. Robin, Raven and Cyborg were sitting in a booth embedded in the rocks, while Starfire flew through an obstacle course in the courtyard below. "We miss anything good?" Beast Boy asked as he and Static took their seats near the end of the booth.

"You're just in time. Star just started." Cyborg replied. Static watched in amazement as Starfire flew through the air at top-speed, avoiding obstacles as they sprang up out of the ground, nimbly dodging laser fire from the turrets on the ground. She fired a few star bolts at the turrets, disabling the guns. Then, just to make sure they were off, she flew down and ripped the turrets off with nothing but her bare hands and threw them into the bay with a roar of fury.

"Woah!" Static yelped. "Girl works out!"

"Tamaranian strength for ya." Beast Boy commented.

"Tama-Wha?" Static asked.

"Tamaranian. She's an alien." Beast Boy said. "One with super strength, flight and can shoot lasers."

"Soooo…like Superman?" Static asked.

"Kind of." Beast Boy shrugged. "Except Starfire's orange."

"Any other aliens on this team I should know about?" Static asked.

"I'm from another dimension, if that counts." Raven deadpanned. Starfire then floated up to her friends.

"Great work, Starfire." Robin said. "Though, you kinda went overboard on the turrets."

"Oh. I apologize." Starfire said with a blush.

Robin turned to Static. "Care to give it a try, Static?" Robin asked.

Static grinned. "Thought you'd never ask." he said as he took out his static saucer. He tossed it, zapped it, and hopped on. He flew over to the far left end of the Titans' training course, which was easily more than twice the size of a football field. Currently, the field was empty, but he could tell from the various indentations in the ground that it wouldn't remain empty for long. He snapped his fingers, feeling the sparks fly off them. The charge flowing through him was as strong as ever. He was ready. "Hit it!" he shouted.

Cyborg gave him a thumbs up before typing up some buttons. "And 3…..2…1!" Cyborg shouted just before an air horn blared. As Static shot forward, metal panels and blocks sprung up out of the ground like daisies. He flew around them with practiced ease, crouching low on his disc to reduce his center of gravity and keeping a hand on the disc's edge to maintain control. Even the ones that shot up mere feet in front of him, he was able to correct his course to fly over or around them. He whooped and hollered as he nimbly navigated the Titans' obstacle course.

It was around the time that Static was halfway through the course that the turrets appeared and began firing lasers at him. As he dodged the incoming fire, he zapped two of the metal blocks and levitated them up, then flung them at two of the turrets. There was one turret remaining, and it locked in on the young hero. Static zapped one of the metal panels, ripped it off its hinges and held it up in front of him to use as a shield. The makeshift riot shield was able to block most of the incoming fire. With a push, he launched the shield at the turret, destroying it.

"Yo Cyborg, this is too easy!" Static hollered at the booth. "How's about pumpin' it up?"

"Okay! You asked for it!" Cyborg hollered back as he typed in a few commands. Another contraption popped out of the ground mere seconds later. This one looked like a really big ball-pitching machine. Except instead of baseballs, it pitched giant spiky metal balls of doom.

"Woah!" Static yelped as he dodged the first washing machine-sized projectile, but only just barely. The second one fired and flew true, but Static was quick on the draw this time. He 'caught' it with his powers, then threw it right back into the machine's firing tube. Unable to fire its next projectile, the machine jammed, stuttering as it puffed out smoke and sparks until finally dying.

"Well, that wasn't so bad." Static commented as he stood up on his disc and crossed his arms. It was then that a trio of panels opened up on the ground, three levitating objects rising from the holes. They were metallic, circular, and flat, reminding Static of UFO's. They also each had a single red 'eye,' which reminded Static of Gear's pet robot Back Pack. Finally, they each had two arms at the end of which were buzzsaws, which reminded Static of -

_Wait. Buzzsaws_? Static thought just before the robots zoomed towards him, buzzsaws blazing. Static yelled in fright as he was chased by _War of the Worlds _meets _Texas Chainsaw Massacre. _"Are you guys trying to kill me?!" Static demanded of the Titans as he flew by the booth.

"Ah, don't worry. We wouldn't deploy them if we didn't think you could handle 'em!" Cyborg yelled back.

"They're new!" Robin excitedly added. "Buzz-bots, a type of drone developed by S.T.A.R. Labs! They just came in last month!"

"THEY WORK VERY WELL!" Static yelled back as his panic mounted. He zapped them, only to find that for some reason, his powers weren't working on the drones.

"They're also outfitted with a non-conductive material!" Robin added.

"I NOTICED!" Static yelled. He decided that it was time to improvise. If Static couldn't zap the buzz-bots, he'd zap everything else.

He threw out his arms and summoned every ounce of power that he could. The panels, the blocks, and the loose bits of scrap that were once a trio of turrets. He had them all orbit around him at high speed, like he was the sun and the objects were his planets. The improvised force field proved an effective deterrent to the robots, who were evidently smart enough to know that getting too close would risk getting smacked by flying junk.

Taking advantage of the robots' momentary hesitation, Static flung a block at one of them. _Bullseye _he thought as the block struck, knocking the former-robot, current-pile of scrap out of the sky. One down, two to go. The second buzz-bot took care of itself in short order, opting to throw caution to the wind and fly towards Static buzzsaws first, only to be smashed by an orbiting block. There was only one left now.

Brandishing its buzz-saws, the buzz-bot slashed at the metal objects, cutting them to pieces. Static widened his eyes in panic as it slowly closed in. He then noticed that the pieces that were once larger metal objects were still orbiting around him. That's when Static got an idea. Letting everything else go, he flung the smaller bits of scrap at the robot, making the scraps buzz around it like a swarm of wasps. There was even stinging, as well as slashing and stabbing, as Static tightened the high-speed orbit of scrap metal into the buzz-bot like a rope around a steer, the pieces making huge gashes in the robot's outer layers. Once a few pieces penetrated the armor and started messing up the internal circuitry, it was as good as dead. Static deactivated his powers, letting the pieces of scrap fall to the ground, as well as one thoroughly destroyed robot.

The Teen Titans' reactions ranged from Cyborg and Beast Boy's excited cheering, Robin and Raven's stoic but loud applause, to Starfire yelling 'woop-woop!' over and over again. Static floated in front of them and took a bow. "Thank you, thank you, you're all too kind!"

"Excellent work, Static." Robin complimented. "I see now how you've been such a success. You're a brilliant improvisational fighter, able to make up new tactics on the fly and using the surrounding environment to your advantage."

Static shrugged in a show of modesty. "No biggie. I've been at this superhero thing for quite a while."

"Go ahead and take five." Robin said. "Beast Boy, you're up."

…..

"You really built this yourself?" Static asked as he took in the impressive interior of the T-Car.

"With my own two hands." Cyborg bragged as the T-Car made its way downtown. "100,000 horsepower plasma-turbine engine, all-terrain hover jets, anti-lock air brakes, _and _an onboard computer that links to my systems, so I can literally feel the road."

"That sounded rehearsed." Static observed.

"Well, it's not very often I get to show off my baby to new friends." Cyborg said.

Static poked at his seat a bit. "Fake leather, though." Static commented.

Cyborg rolled his human eye. "Yeah, if I had used _real _leather, I'd never hear the end of it from Beast Boy."

"Whaddaya mean?" Static asked.

"BB's vegan." Cyborg answered.

"Get out of here." Static said. "BB? The dude who regularly turns into a man-eating dinosaur?"

"I know, right?"

"But he was eating bacon and eggs just this morning."

"_Tofu _bacon and eggs."

"Oh. Well, I still wouldn't have pegged Beast Boy for a vegan."

"Most people don't at first." Cyborg replied with a shrug. "To be fair to the grass stain, he's never really preachy or up in people's faces about it. Though he did tell me one time that when you can regularly transform _into _a pig, eating pig feels kinda wrong."

"….Does he transform into a pig often?" Static asked.

"Not really. I was just giving an example. Though lately he HAS been turning into an entelodont a lot."

"Entela-what?"

"Some prehistoric pig monster BB watched a documentary about on the discovery channel a couple weeks back. He thought it looked really cool so he's been on a boar kick lately."

It was then that a blaring alarm went off in the car, making Static jump out of his skin. "Uh-oh…." Cyborg said as he turned off the alarm. "That's the crime alert, we've got trouble." he said as he typed on the keyboard. A computer screen flipped open from the dashboard, revealing a map of Downtown Jump City and a blinking red dot.

"Armed robbery at…..Patty's Patties?!" Cyborg blurted out. "Oh ho, now it's personal. NOBODY holds up my favorite burger joint! Buckle up, Static."

Cyborg floored it as he flipped another switch. A siren that kinda sounded like the one from Ghostbusters began blaring form the T-Car. He drove the vehicle across downtown in a surprisingly short time. Within mere minutes, they arrived in front of a burger drive-in joint, the T-Car skidding to a halt in the parking lot and the two young superheroes hopping out, ready for the worst. They could see the scene inside; a pair of criminals wearing black ski-masks holding big, intimidating-looking guns at the cashier. For any police officer, it was a dangerous situation. But for a pair of superheroes? It was a walk in the park.

"I'm bulletproof, so just stay behind me." Cyborg instructed as the two walked into the burger joint. The two criminals swung on their heels and pointed their rifles at the two heroes. Static could now see that they were AK-47s - the wet dream of Dakota gangbangers. Static wished he could say that this was the first time he saw the infamous rifle up close.

The two criminals didn't even bother making any demands. They just raised their weapons and opened fire on the two heroes. Static raised his electro-magnetic aura, creating a magnetic field that harmlessly deflected the bullets. Meanwhile, the bullets barely made a mark in Cyborg's metal skin. Eventually, the two rifles ran dry.

"…..I'm sorry, but I gotta ask; did you _really _think that would work?" Cyborg asked. "Static? You mind?"

Static didn't need to be asked twice. He fired his static bolts at the rifles, shocking the guns and by extension the robbers. By the time he levitated the guns out of their hands, the robbers had been sufficiently tazed into submission.

"Crisis over, folks." Cyborg said as he walked over to the robbers and dragged them out by their legs.

"Oh my God, thank you both so much!" the cashier, a young lady, gushed. "How can we repay you?"

Cyborg paused, then looked at the menu above. "How about four bacon cheeseburgers on the house?" he asked.

"Make it five!" Static added.

Five free bacon cheeseburgers later (Static thought the four burgers he ordered was for the team, but he ate them all. Dude eats a lot, apparently), the two robbers were tied to a nearby street lamp, their guns were next to the T-Car, and Cyborg was on the phone with the JCPD. Funnily enough, his phone was his hand. Yes, the thumb was the earpiece and the pinky was the mouth piece, shut up.

"Yo Rick, it's Cy." Cyborg began. Apparently, he was on a first-name basis with one of the emergency operators. Static wondered if that was common for superheroes in other cities. If it was, he _seriously _needed to learn that one operator's name back in Dakota. She sounded nice.

"You may have heard already, but Patty's place got held up a while ago." Cyborg went on. "…Yeah, don't worry, I took care of it with a little help….Yup, they're tied to a lamp post, just pick 'em up whenever. But here's the weird thing. For a couple of punks, they were packin' some serious heat….AK-47s….I think they got 'em through that gun smuggling operation….yeah, we'll process 'em. Hopefully we'll catch something you missed…..okay, see ya Rick."

With that, Cyborg pushed the antennae back down into his thumb and walked over to the T-Car's trunk. "Static, float those guns into the air. We're gonna bag 'em and drop them off at the evidence room back in the Tower once we go back there."

"What was that stuff about a gun smuggling operation?" Static asked as he levitated the two vicious-looking rifles into the air.

"Some heavy-duty firearms like these AKs have been trickling into the Jump City underworld for the last few weeks." Cyborg replied as he fished two large plastic bags out of the T-Car's trunk. "JCPD thinks that some new arms dealers have moved in and set up a smuggling ring, one that sells heavy-duty hardware to the local riff-raff."

He held open the two plastic bags. Static carefully lowered each gun into each bag. "Thing is, these guys are _good_. They cover their tracks so well they might as well be ghosts. Heck, they don't even sell that much or that often. Guess they're smart enough to know that if they make too much noise, we'd come down on them hard."

Static sighed and shook his head as Cyborg zipped up the bags. "You should come down on them hard anyways." he told the mechanized hero. "I grew up in Dakota, a town that has a _real _bad history with gang violence. Trust me, you don't want _any of that _in your neighborhood."

"Would if we could, but like I said, they're good." Cyborg rhymed as he put the bagged rifles in the trunk. "That's why we're takin' these rifles back to the Tower. Hopefully our crime computer will have better luck tracking these weapons than the JCPD."

He slammed the trunk shut. "Come on. Robin will want to process these things sooner instead of later."

….

"Hmmm…" Robin said as he examined the rifle closely. "The serial number has been filed off." he commented as he dusted it. "No fingerprints either. Definitely the work of a professional."

Robin, Cyborg and Static were all in the evidence room, examining the two rifles confiscated by the robbers earlier that day. Cyborg was at the crime computer, pouring over charts and graphics that Static didn't even try to make sense of, whereas Robin was staring at one of the rifles intensely, like it would grow legs and walk away if he so much as blinked. Between the two of them, Static was feeling a little bit useless. Detective work wasn't really his forté. He was starting to wonder if he should even be in that room at all.

"Hello, what's this?" Robin said as he ran a q-tip over part of the gun. He held it up and examined it closely, squinting as he did so. He took it over to a scanner by the computer screen Cyborg was working. "Cyborg. Analyze this."

"On it." Cyborg replied, typing away furiously. Charts and graphics depicting molecules appeared on the screen. "Looks like….fish oil?" he asked.

"The docks." Robin concluded. "Cyborg, search the city directory for fisheries."

"There's three." Cyborg said. "One abandoned, two active."

"So they're hidin' out in an abandoned fish-shack?" Static asked as he walked up to the screen.

Robin shook his head. "The presence of fish oil residue on the gun makes me think that they're using fishing trawlers to smuggle the weapons into the city. What we're looking for is an _active _fishery. Cyborg, see if you can't find their shipping manifests, when the next haul is due."

Cyborg typed away, sifting through the ocean traffic data for their ship. Static was impressed by how quickly Robin was able to zero in on the bad guys' hideout just from a little bit of sticky stuff. Guess that came naturally from being the sidekick….er…_partner _to the world's greatest detective.

"Bingo." Cyborg said. "There's a big fishing trawler due tonight at 10:30 at Sally Sardine's warehouse. Looks like we're doing a good ol' fashioned sting."

"But there are _two _active fish shacks." Static said. "What if this one's legit?"

"Then that means the other one isn't, and we'll break down _their _doors." Cyborg said.

"Okay then." Robin said. "Cyborg. You'll be in charge of the sting. Take Raven and Static with you for back-up. Starfire and Beast Boy will be on standby if you need extra help."

"What about you?" Static asked.

"I have to go look for the H.I.V.E., remember?" Robin asked. "Just follow Cyborg's lead and you'll do fine."

"But that won't be for a while." Cyborg said as he glanced at the clock. Quarter to seven. "For now…..who's up for pizza? Beast Boy said he'd be buying tonight. Don't know why though."

"Yeah, that would be because I stomped him at foozball." Static said with a triumphant smirk.

…

**Keep those OC's coming, people! Send me your OC's via PM (apologies for not clarifying that last week), because I want LOTS of OC's and I don't have nearly enough.**

**I mean, seriously guys. All I want is a Super-Powered Army of Evil. Is that so wrong?**


	5. Long Night

**Guess which 1970's cult classic inspired a certain scene in this chapter.**

…

"And she just _kissed him_?"

"Eeeeyup. Apparently that's how Tamaranians learn new languages."

"….How the heck does _that _work on a biological level?"

"You know, Starfire never really explained that. My theory is that she accesses the subject's brain through the lips somehow."

"So…..what? She _mind-melded _with Robin through her mouth?"

"Essentially."

"So Tamaranians are like, really sexy Vulcans?"

"Dude. Don't call Robin's girl 'sexy.' Ain't appropriate."

"What? She _is _sexy."

"True, but if you value your kneecaps, don't ever let Robin catch you saying that out loud."

"Will you two please be quiet?" Raven piped up for the first time since the stakeout began. "I'm trying to read here."

Cyborg, Static and Raven were all in the T-Car, parked carefully in a shadowy alley by the Jump City docks. They were currently waiting on the fishing trawler to deliver its payload, which they suspected was more than just fish. Cyborg and Static were passing the time discussing the team's origins while Raven tried to ignore both of them by keeping her nose buried in a book. That's the second time Static saw Raven reading a book. Girl really liked her books, apparently.

Static sighed. "Wonder how Robin's hive hunt is going." he wondered aloud.

…..

Robin sat perched on the corner of the roof. Perching on roof corners was a skill he developed from years of being Batman's apprentice, and it's helped on more than one occasion since he moved to Jump and established the Teen Titans.

He whipped out his data pad and started observing the camera feeds for the third time that evening. Since sundown, he had been planting small micro-cameras in alleys all across the city, cutting edge technology courtesy of Wayne Industries, naturally. They never made it to the production stage on account of their abysmal shelf life. Each camera could only function for a day or two before their internal circuitry fizzled out completely. Disposable micro-cameras that weren't long-lasting weren't desirable to most intelligence agencies, but suited vigilantes like Robin just fine. Searching for the H.I.V.E. in their usual hangouts didn't turn up anything last night, so tonight he was expanding his search. The boy wonder was hoping that, with enough micro-cameras positioned in seedy alleyways across the city, he'd be able to detect some sort of clue to the H.I.V.E.'s whereabouts and/or activities.

He got a clue alright, but it wasn't what he was expecting.

His keen observational skills couldn't help but note how, for the last hour, shady-looking characters of all shapes and sizes had been steadily trickling through a select few alleys. They never numbered more than five or six at a time, but a few dozen such characters had passed through those alleys in the last twenty minutes alone. Robin had never seen so many people use the same alleyways in one night before. They were all walking in the same direction as well - south. It absolutely _wreaked _of a pattern.

Following up on a hunch, Robin leapt from the roof corner he was perched upon and landed on another roof, and began running across it. Upon reaching the edge, he jumped across the gap to the next roof. He repeated this pattern for several minutes, jumping and leaping from rooftop to rooftop, using his bo-staff as a pole vault or his grappling talon as necessary to cross the bigger gaps with practiced ease. He eventually arrived on a rooftop overlooking an alley that he hadn't tagged yet.

In the alley below him, there were five other people walking through. They wore hoodies, hats, coats, things that clearly indicated that they didn't want to draw attention to themselves, especially their faces. Like the others, they were heading south. Robin knew from experience that Jump City's industrial district was located on the south side, and that there were several condemned warehouses there. If Robin had to bet on where all these shady characters were heading…..

There was no longer any doubt in Robin's mind. Something _big _was about to go down tonight, and apparently, every other citizen of the Jump City underworld had received an invitation to it. There was nothing to really suggest that the H.I.V.E. had anything to do with it, but he doubted it was a coincidence that this was happening just a few days after the H.I.V.E. Five made their big comeback.

He silently tailed the quintet of thugs from the shadows. He never made a sound, the five characters blissfully unaware of his presence. They stuck mostly to alleyways and rarely-used streets, walking casually the whole way there, making sure not to draw undue attention. Sure enough, they led him right to the condemned part of the industrial district. He slid down a gutter pipe into an alley below, blending into the darkness of night. He watched from afar as the group walked inside a massive warehouse, so large it took up the entire block.

He leap-frogged from shadow to shadow, staying behind everything from dumpsters to a forgotten bag of garbage on the ground. He reached the far wall of the warehouse, and climbed up the gutter pipe. On the roof, he saw a glass skylight, a perfect place to peek in. He cautiously approached it, and looked through it from the very edge, being careful not to be too visible.

Inside, there was a whole crowd of street thugs of every conceivable shape, size and color. Standing on top of a crate in front of the crowd as though it were a stage was a woman of african descent, deadlock ponytail, wearing a leather jacket over a tank top, shredded up jeans, and fingerless gloves on her hands.

"Can you count, suckahs?!" she demanded of the crowd. "I say the future is ours! If you can count!" She spoke loudly and passionately, like a fiery religious leader addressing her congregation.

"Look at we got here tonight…" she said with a smile as she put her hands on her hips. "I see before me some two _hundred _men and women, all ready to seize their destinies. To seize _greatness_! For too long, we have remained separate from one another, brothers and sisters. For too long we have been focused solely on our own turf, our own _little piece _of turf! _Ten square feet of ground. _Blind to how powerful we could _truly_ be."

"My friends!" she went on. "We could _run _this city! We could _own _this city! All we need do is _unite_!"

Those words earned more than a few wry chuckles and even mocking laughs from the audience, as well as no small amount of skeptical looks. "Yeah right, Jessica." one of the gangbangers from the audience said. "I know what you're _trying_ to do, but we can _all_ name five reasons why it ain't gonna work." the gang banger's comments earned a few murmurs of agreement from the crowd.

"You mean the Teen Titans?" the woman, apparently named Jessica, asked. "Please. We have them outnumbered forty to one!"

"Numbers don't count for nothin' against the Titans and you know it!" another gangster, one with a thick mafioso accent argued. "They're friggin' superheroes! They fly and shoot lasers and turn into friggin' dinosaurs! What do we got? Guns?! What are guns gonna do?!"

The Italian gentleman's comments inflamed the crowd, inspiring demands as to the point of this gathering. Jessica held up her hands in an attempt to calm the crowd. "I hear you, brothers and sisters! Believe me, I hear you!" The crowd quieted down, waiting for Jessica to make her point. "Tis true. We are but mere mortals. For years, we have cowered in the shadows, always keeping an eye to the sky, living in fear. And every so often, we would spare the a scornful look towards the _Tower_. That monument to their own vanity! That throne upon which they sit, thinking themselves kings, nay, _gods_!"

"Well, I say no longer!" She yelled, once again finding her passion for public speaking. "No longer shall we live in fear! No longer shall we cower in the shadows! Instead, we shall step into the light! And fear not my friends, for at long last, we shall have the means to do so!"

It was then that Robin saw a pair of large, muscular men in casual street clothes pushing a cart onto the crate. There was a blue tarp covering whatever was on the cart. Jessica quickly noticed it, shooed the pair offstage, and grabbed the tarp. "Behold, brothers and sisters! The instruments of our salvation!"

She pulled the tarp off the cart with a flourish. Underneath was a large rack filled with dozens of what seemed to be gas canisters. She grabbed one and held it aloft. Robin could see that it was a small canister, no bigger than a small fire extinguisher. Attached to the nozzle was a mask meant to cover the nose and mouth. The crowd was rather confused. "What? Huffin' happy gas? _That's _your big plan?" the Italian from earlier said.

"Oh ye of little faith." Jessica replied. She then pulled on the mask's strap, affixing it to her face. Robin raised an eyebrow, wondering just what she was doing. The gas mask properly in place, she twisted the release valve. Within seconds, the mask was filled with a pinkish-purple, slightly glittery gas, which she breathed deep.

Jessica suddenly collapsed to her knees as she went into a coughing fit. She squeezed her torso and screwed her eyes shut as she coughed and hacked and wheezed, the gas clearly not meant for inhalation. A couple of armed goons came onto the stage to help her, but she waved them off without bothering to look up at them. Robin was tempted to jump in to break up the show and save this woman from her own stupidity, but he knew that jumping into a crowded warehouse full of thugs and goons wasn't a smart idea. After ten seconds or so, the coughing subsided. Jessica stood back up, freeing her mask, and opening her eyes for the first time since her coughing fit began.

They were glowing bright pink.

So were her hands.

She held them up and fired a concussive laser blast from her hands, blasting a hole in the roof above her. Robin jumped as the blast erupted just a few feet away from where he was crouching. It was then that the boy wonder realized, to his horror, what that gas was. It was the quantum vapor that brought Static to Jump City, and he was witnessing the very event that Static had wanted to prevent - a second Big Bang.

With an evil grin, Jessica grabbed another gas can and held it aloft. Several other gang members gathered around the can rack. "This will be your shield! This will be your sword! Arm yourselves, brothers and sisters! The revolution is nigh!" With that, the gangsters around the rack grabbed gas canisters and began to toss them into the crowd which suddenly became a lot more eager to breathe in the gas.

Robin hissed out a curse. The Titans were too late. The H.I.V.E. had already delivered their package and now it looks like whoever hired them was putting it to good use. Outnumbered though he was, he had to stop them. If he didn't stop them here and now, a new wave of meta-criminals will wash over Jump City. He whipped out his communicator to call for back up with one hand while readying his bo-staff with the other.

"Enjoying the show, hero?"

Instinct is the only thing that saved Robin as he spun around in time to block the bo-staff strike with his own staff. Before him was…a mask. A mask that was pitch black, save for the two eyeholes. The stranger struck Robin in the gut with his knee to stun him, then smacked him aside with his staff. Robin was quick to recover and was back on his feet.

"Star! Beast Boy! Home in on my location!" Robin ordered into the communicator before reattaching it to his belt.

"More guests for the party? Sure, why not." the stranger said as he twirled his bo-staff confidently. Robin took in his appearance as he sized up this new opponent. He wore a pitch-black jumpsuit that honestly made it hard for Robin to distinguish him from the shadows. He could just barely make out silvery shoulder pads, elbow pads, knee pads, boots, gloves and a belt. Not to mention the bo-staff he expertly twirled around.

"Who are you?" Robin demanded.

"The name's Nightstrike." the stranger said. "And let's just say I'm here on behalf of an old friend of yours."

He pointed the end of his bo-staff at the boy wonder, which began to glow red. Robin instinctually ducked and flipped around, dodging the incoming laser blasts. Nightstrike then put away his bo-staff and whipped out a desert eagle pistol and began opening fire on the boy wonder. Robin swirled his bulletproof cape to block the bullets (silently wishing the cape was a little bit longer as he did so), and tossed some explosive circular discs at the stranger. His opponent did a few backflips to avoid the detonations. The two stared each other down from the opposite ends of the roof.

….

"You play Monster Hunter? Seriously?" Static asked as he peaked what Cyborg was playing on his 3DS.

"What? It's a game where I get to kill dragons and dinosaurs and sea monsters and stuff with buddies." Cyborg replied. "What's not to like?"

"The grinding." Static said.

"Okay, yeah, it gets kinda grindy at times, I won't deny that." Cyborg said. "But the monster fights are fun enough that I don't really mind fighting the same one over and over again a few times."

"Hey."

"BWAH!" Static yelped as Raven appeared next to him outside the car, startling the Dakota hero. "Don't do that!" he scolded once he caught his breath.

"Anything?" Cyborg asked.

"They just finished unloading the fishing trawler." Raven reported. "Nothing on it but fish. No guns. Not even a pistol."

"So this one's legit?" Static asked.

"Which means the other one is where our bad guys are hiding." Cyborg said. "Come on, let's roll." On that note, the metal man climbed out of the car as did Static. "No flying, you two. Just follow me. Gotta maintain a low profile."

With that, the three superheroes headed towards the other fishery, which wasn't too far away to reach by foot. They all kept to the shadows of the various crates and containers as they made their way to their target.

…..

Robin and Nightstrike had been staring each other down for a torturous fifteen seconds now, neither one willing to move a muscle, lest they inadvertently create an opening for the other to exploit. Robin knew from experience that, when dealing with an unknown opponent, the most dangerous thing to assume was that you were better than they are. Robin had to assume that this person was at least as good as he himself was, otherwise he might be taken off guard.

He heard even more coughing and even a few screams in the warehouse below him. Every second he wasted up here with this clown, another meta-human was born right underneath his feet. Nightstrike was stalling for time, that much was obvious. _Where are you guys_. he thought to himself. He needed his back up and he needed it now.

It was then that a green squirrel flew out of nowhere and Nightstrike right in his face. "Ah! What the hell!" the stranger cursed as he ripped the squirrel off and threw it through the air. It then morphed into a hawk in mid-air, circled around, then morphed into a prehistoric boar the size of a rhino that charged towards the stranger.

"Robin!" Star's voice said as the Tamaranian princess appeared floating above him. "Are you alright?"

"Perfectly, now that you're here." Robin said. "Beast Boy can keep this guy occupied while you and I break up the party in the warehouse. Let's go!"

Robin tossed an explosive disc at the skylight, shattering it and then leaping through the hole, Starfire right behind him as always.

The two found themselves surrounded by empty gas canisters.

And a couple hundred angry meta-humans.

Robin cursed. They were too late.

…..

Cyborg booted the door down and pointed his sonic cannon into the darkness. A flashlight flipped open from his shoulder to illuminate the area. The warehouse was what you'd expect. Large, spacious, lots of crates. "Woo." Static commented as he wafted his gloved hand in front of his face. "Smells nasty in here."

"Yeah, it's almost like we're in a _fishery_ or something." Raven commented in turn.

Cyborg walked over to a crate and pried it open with his bare hands, super-strength being one of the benefits granted by his cybernetics. Inside, there were fish. He stuck his hand in and dug around a bit….and then he pulled out an MP40. "Well, we found the product." Cyborg said. "But where are the dealers?"

It was then that a light appeared deeper in the warehouse, behind more crates. Cautiously, the three teens walked towards the source. It was a fairly large TV, nestled amongst several large crates in the center of the building. On it was the fizzling snow of static. "This wasn't on before…." Cyborg said as he rearmed his sonic cannon. "Stay sharp. I smell a trap."

"Nice to see that time has not dulled your nose."

It was a voice that came from the TV. A deep, slightly raspy or even husky voice. It seemed to freeze Cyborg and Raven where they stood, and Static couldn't blame them. Voice was so creepy it gave him goosebumps himself. A face then appeared on the TV. Or rather, a mask. Half of it was pitch black, while the other half was bronze. On the bronze side was the only eyehole Static could make out, revealing a single black eye.

"Slade…." Cyborg said.

"Cyborg. Raven." Slade replied. "And…a new Titan? Oh, I _have _been away too long. Congratulations on joining the team…..Static."

"Well well, look who's been studying the internet superhero data base." Static quipped.

"You _do _have quite an impressive resumé." Slade replied. Static shivered a little despite himself. He didn't really know why, but he didn't like the way this guy was looking at him. It felt like the guy was studying him. Analyzing him.

"Back off, Slade." Cyborg said. "He's with us."

"A pity." Slade replied as he turned his gaze back to Cyborg. "I see you've finally come across my little project."

"I was just about to say." Cyborg began. "Gun smuggling? Seems like small-time for you."

"Oh, it's just a little something to help me get back on my feet, as previous encounters have left my resources dry." Slade said. "Make no mistake, I have much grander ambitions in mind."

"What kind of ambitions?" Cyborg asked.

"Ask Robin." Slade replied. "I'm sure he's finding out right about now."

…..

One-on-one fights weren't normally Beast Boy's forte´. That had always been more Robin or Cyborg's thing. He was always used to either fighting a singular villain side-by-side with his teammates, or keeping the low-rank mooks off his teammates' butts so they could deal with the head baddie. So, one-on-one with what looked to Beast Boy like an elite assassin, he was slightly out of his element.

Out of his element, but not out of his league.

As a hummingbird, he darted around Nightstrike, looking for a good opportunity to get in some good hits. He nimbly dodged his frustrated staff strikes. Seeing an opening, he morphed into a leopard and lunged. The stranger was quick though, as he brought his bo-staff up just in time to block his claws and teeth. Beast Boy snarled as he clamped down on the staff with his feline jaws, his fangs on display. Fangs that grew even bigger as he morphed into a smilodon to increase his weight, hoping to catch Nightstrike off-balance.

The tactic paid off as Nightstrike succumbed to Beast Boy's sudden shift in weight, allowing the green saber-tooth to pin him to the ground. With a grunt and a heave however, the stranger was able to plant his feet on the changeling's belly and quickly push upwards, flipping him over his head. Beast Boy morphed into an armadillo in mid-air, rolled across the ground as a leathery ball, then morphed into an entelodont, doing a quick 180 and charging at the assassin.

Nightstrike leapt into the air just as the hog from hell was about to run him down and landed on the boar's back. He took out a garrote and quickly looped it over Beast Boy's snout, caught his throat, and started pulling. The choking tactic proved ineffective, as Beast Boy morphed into an anaconda, which allowed him not only to slip out of the garrote, but give the assassin a taste of his own medicine, wrapping around him and trying to squeeze the life out of him. Nightstrike's finger was able to reach a button on his belt, and Beast Boy suddenly felt a shock go through him, prompting him to quickly slither off and morph back into human form. His opponent stunned, Nightstrike took the initiative and struck out with his bo-staff, only to hit nothing but fur and muscle as Beast Boy morphed into a gorilla. Having recovered from the shock, he threw a wild haymaker at Nightstrike, but the stranger did several backflips to avoid it, as well as put some distance between himself and the big green ape. The gorilla roared and charged.

…

Meanwhile, back inside the warehouse, Robin punched the reptilian face that was hissing at him square in the nose. The 'Bang Baby,' as Static would call them if Robin recalled, backed off, clutching his nose. Another young criminal suddenly teleported in front of him and was swinging at Robin with a rusty pipe. Before Robin could swing back, the man teleported out of the way. It was then that he felt a fist strike the side of his face. Robin recovered quickly, and found that the teleporter had warped to his side. Both he and the lizard man grinned evilly as they double-teamed the boy wonder.

Starfire wasn't faring much better, as she was going up against someone whose skin was like wood, and was just as tough. Punching him did naught but give her knuckles splinters, and his own punches hit her like steam trains. She was eventually able to catch one of his fists, grapple with him, then blast him with her eye beams into a wall.

She then saw a young girl in the corner with her hands on the warehouse's fusebox. Her whole body was jittering as she was being electrocuted. Starfire's hero instincts kicked in as she punched a few more Bang Babies out of the way and flew to the young girl to help her. She was able to pull the girl away from the circuit breakers, gently holding her by her shoulders. "Are you alright?" she concernedly asked.

"….Never been better." the girl replied. She placed her hands on Starfire's chest and the Tamaranian suddenly felt thousands of volts of electricity enter her body, making her scream in response.

"Starfire!" Robin yelled as she saw his girlfriend's smoking body hit the floor, a girl cackling over her. With a grunt, he pole-vaulted over the lizardman and the teleporter and towards the girl. The girl saw him approach, grinned evilly, and she fired bolts of lightning at Robin from her hands. He was able to dodge them and closed the distance enough to deliver a brutal heel kick to the girl's chest, sending her flying into a crate and knocking the wind out of her.

Robin knelt down and checked Starfire's pulse. Still breathing, which allowed him to let out a sigh of relief. "One down." said a voice behind Robin. He turned on his heel and saw Jessica, the woman from earlier, staring him down with glowing eyes. "Four more to go…."

…

Back on the roof, Beast Boy was starting to get tired. He had shifted and counter-shifted into every form he could think of, looking for something to give him an edge. But no matter what he threw at Nightstrike, the villain was always just out of reach and always coming back for more. He just couldn't quite get an edge over this guy. Beast Boy wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up.

Nightstrike smacked Beast Boy right in his big gorilla gut with the tip of his bo-staff, stunning him long enough to earn a follow-up strike across his jaw. He lunged in for another strike, but Beast Boy countered by morphing into a kangaroo and delivering a vicious double-kick to the stranger's torso, knocking him back several feet. He tumbled and rolled across the ground, but quickly recovered onto his feet and stood up. "Okay, I'm gettin' _real _tired of you, Animal Planet." Nightstrike growled. He then pulled out two MP5 submachine guns and pointed them at Beast Boy.

Beast Boy's morphing was thankfully quicker than Nightstrike's trigger finger. He morphed into a giant ankylosaur just before the bullets impacted against his skin. The bullets did little against the changeling's bony armor. After four seconds of continuous fire, Nightstrike's guns ran dry. Beast Boy smacked his clubbed tail against the ground intimidatingly. He'd be smirking if this form had lips.

"…..You realize you're on a _roof_, right?" Nightstrike pointed out. He then slid a rectangular object across the ground towards the dinosaur's feet. Before Beast Boy could even notice that it was an explosive device, the stranger pulled out a detonator and hit the trigger. The explosive went off. Thankfully, the changeling was able to survive the explosion and the resulting shrapnel, thanks again to his heavily armored form.

Unfortunately, the _heavily _part was suddenly working against him as the ground collapsed beneath his feet, unable to take the strain of both a concussive explosive _and _an armored dinosaur's great weight.

….

Robin thought for sure that he and Star were done for. That is, up until an explosion and a crash were heard from the roof. Jessica wheeled around and saw a green dinosaur roaring in panic as it plummeted to the floor, crushing several crates under its weight upon landing. It created enough of a distraction for Robin to drop some smokescreen bombs to create some cover. He then picked up Starfire bridal style and ran towards an unoccupied corner of the massive warehouse, knowing that he had to get Star out of harm's way first and foremost. He found a quiet enough corner and set her down against a crate.

"Ugh…..." Beast Boy groaned as he morphed back into human form and rubbed his head, trying to ease the headache. He then noticed where he was - standing in the middle of a half-ruined warehouse filled with angry meta-humans, all of whom were suddenly looking at him evilly. "Uh-oh." he muttered just before they all dogpiled on him.

The dogpile didn't last long as Beast Boy broke free as an elephant, shaking the mutants off before morphing again into a tyrannosaur and roaring to scare them off. Several Bang Babies took the hint and scattered, running out the door and breaking through the windows. "No!" Robin shouted as he noticed this.

"Robin…?" Starfire asked as she groggily came to. "What is happening?"

"They're getting away!" Robin shouted as he took off out the door. He ran out into the parking lot and saw that the Bang Babies were all scattering in different directions, jumping over, blasting through and in a couple of cases even digging underneath the fence that surrounded the warehouse. "Titans -"

Before Robin could finish that order, a boot flew through the air and clocked him right in the jaw. Robin tumbled across the ground and stopped on his feet, bo-staff ready. In front of him was Nightstrike. "I'm not done with you yet." he growled.

"Beast Boy! Star! Round up the other Bang Babies! Don't let them get away!" Robin ordered. His two friends took to the air to follow those orders.

"Bad call." Nightstrike said. He whipped out an MP5 from his belt and opened fire on the two flying heroes. Robin was quick on the draw, disarming the assassin with a birdarang. He turned towards Robin and charged. He took his out his own bo-staff and, much to his surprise, split his bo-staff in two and began attacking Robin with the two halves, using them as dual night sticks.

Robin was able to block every blow Nightstrike attempted with the twin sticks, and with a flourishing twirl, was able to twist them out of his hands. He held his bo-staff against Nightstrike's throat. "You lose." Robin coldly said.

"Alright, bird boy. You beat me fair and square." Nightstrike said as he held his hands up.

"Your other weapons." Robin ordered. "Drop them." Nightstrike obliged, his other MP5 SMG and desert eagle clattering to the ground. "Okay. First things first. Who do you work for?"

"Old boss of yours." Nightstrike said. "Funny thing. Apparently, you used to have _my _job, back in the day."

"I never worked for a criminal!" Robin snapped.

"Really? _Never_?" Nightstrike asked. Robin's eyes widened in realization. It all suddenly clicked together. He knew who was behind all this.

"Slade…" Robin hissed. "He's back. Which must make _you _his new apprentice."

"Bingo." Nightstrike replied. "And lemme tell ya, this is a pretty sweet gig. Pretty dumb of you to quit like you did, but hey. Your loss, my gain, right?"

"What's he planning?" the boy wonder demanded.

"A Second Big Bang." Nightstrike said. The apprentice shrugged. "Kind of obvious by now, don't ya think?"

"Why?" Robin continued to question. "What does he have to gain from this?"

"You mean besides a truckload of manpower?" Nightstrike asked.

"Manpower?" Robin asked.

"Weren't you listenin' to Jessica's little speech?" Nightstrike asked. "This is a revolution. And guess who our General Washington is."

"What does Slade plan to do with an army of meta-humans?" Robin asked.

"Sorry, hero. Boss says that part's need-to-know only." Nightstrike replied.

"We'll see if you're still singing that tune after a day or two in the Tower's interrogation room." Robin threatened.

"I don't think so." Nightstrike said. He stomped his foot on a nearby two-by-four, flipping it up into the air. It distracted Robin for a split-second, just long enough for Nightstrike to get in a quick sucker punch on Robin's nose, making him drop his bo-staff. He then grabbed the two-by-four plank while it was still in the air and busted it in half over Robin's head. The assassin pressed his advantage, taking advantage of the boy wonder's disorientation. He got it another check to his face, one to his gut, and tried to follow it up with a wild haymaker. Robin blocked the haymaker and got a punch in on Nightstrike's face. Wrapping his haymaking arm around Robin's blocking arm, Nightstrike pulled Robin in close enough for a vicious headbutt. Dazed and confused, there was nothing Robin could do to stop Slade's new apprentice from grabbing his head with both hands, then slamming his face into his knee. Robin was on the ground, wiping blood from his nose and mouth.

"I think we're done here." Nightstrike said as he quickly turned on his heel and scooped up his weapons. Robin's vision only came back into focus just in time to see Nightstrike hop the fence and disappear into the shadows. He was gone. Robin realized that all of the Bang Babies were gone too.

Starfire and a green pterosaur landed nearby, both seemingly out of breath. "Forgive us, Robin." Starfire sorrowfully said. "We tried to prevent their escape, but there were simply too many of them, all going in too many different directions. They have scattered - ." The Tamaranian gasped as she saw Robin's condition. "Robin! You are hurt!"

"I've had worse." Robin assured the alien.

"Dude. What happened?" Beast Boy.

"Jump City's own Big Bang." Robin bitterly spat. "That's what happened."

…..

"The Big Bang." Slade said. "That's what the citizens of Dakota called it, wasn't it? A sudden influx of meta-humans into a city's population. A wasted opportunity, if you think about it."

"What are you talkin' about?" Static asked.

"So many superpowered beings in one place. Think of what they could have accomplished if they had all joined forces, rallied under one banner." Slade said. "But no. Instead they chose to resume the same petty squabbles they had as mortals, all too content to remain in the trash that spawned them. They divided themselves into their own little gangs, which is what ultimately led to their downfall. They could have been so much more than mere thugs, had they only united. Or at least, had someone been there to provide them with….guidance."

"So it was you." Static accused. "_You _hired the H.I.V.E. Five to break into Alva Industries, steal a sample of Bang Baby juice - "

"And create my own private army of meta-humans?" Slade finished for the young hero. "My apologies. I'm not usually this obvious."

"We'll stop you Slade." Cyborg said. "We always do."

"Actually, according to my clock, you're already too late…" With that, Slade's face disappeared from the screen, replaced by a digital clock that displayed 00:10. Then 00:09. 00:08.

"That's a bomb, isn't it?" Static asked.

"Raven?" Cyborg asked.

"On it." Raven said as her eyes glowed. "Static, try not to barf."

"What?" Static asked.

"Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos." Raven said as the three heroes were suddenly sucked into a circle-shaped shadow that appeared on the floor.

…

They emerged just beside the T-Car, and just a few seconds later, an explosion was heard further down the dock. Cyborg and Raven breathed a sigh of relief. Static, however, was leaning against a cargo container and clutching his stomach, trying his stomach's contents right where they were. "What…..what was…"

"I teleported us through the realm of eternal shadows." Raven explained, answering Static's question.

"I think I'm gonna be sick….." Static whined.

"Yes, the realm of eternal shadows has that effect on people at first. You get used to it." Raven replied.

"Who _was _that guy?" Static asked, his nausea finally beginning to subside.

"Slade." Cyborg said. "Old enemy of the Titans, and a dangerous one too."

"Yeah." Static said. "The bomb kinda tipped me off to that."

It was then that Cyborg's communicator went off. "Yo?" he asked. "….Roger that." he snapped it shut. "We're heading back to the tower to debrief with Robin."

"Robin found the H.I.V.E.?" Static asked, his extreme vertigo finally fading away.

"Not exactly….." Cyborg said.

…..

All five Teen Titans, plus Static, stood in the ops room. Robin was looking out on Jump's skyline while the other five were standing behind him expectantly. "So….just to recap." Robin finally said. "Slade has returned…"

"And he has a new apprentice…" Starfire said.

"And a whole army of Second Generation Bang Babies." Static finished.

"…On a scale of one to ten, how screwed are we?" Beast Boy asked.

Robin let out a long sigh. "Static, you lived through Dakota's Big Bang." he said as he turned toward the electric hero. "Don't sugarcoat it. What kind of fallout can we expect from this?"

"Well….." Static said, trying to recall the first few weeks of the Big Bang. "First off, keep an eye on the hospitals."

"Hospitals?" Robin asked.

"Turning into a meta-human is a pretty ugly process half the time. Nasty side effects were common. Some people even died." Static said. "For the first week or two, Dakota's hospitals were overflowing with Bang Babies who couldn't handle their mutations."

Robin stroked his chin and nodded in approval. "If we're lucky, the Bang Babies who need to be admitted will be willing to part with information." he speculated. "After that?"

"Do I even need to say it?" Static asked. "Crime. Lots of it. Most of Dakota's Bang Babies were gang bangers, so a lot of them saw their new powers as a blank check to steal whatever they wanted. Seeing as that party you crashed had dang near every petty criminal in Jump there, I'd expect something similar here. So yeah. We're gonna be busy for a while."

"Busier than you think." Robin said as he turned back to look out the window. "These Bang Babies….they have something yours didn't."

"What would that be?" Static asked.

"A leader." Robin darkly said.

"Who? You mean that Slade dude?" Static asked.

"Yes." Robin said. "Slade is hands down one of the deadliest enemies we've ever faced. Cunning. Ruthless. And now he has an army of meta-humans at his beck and call."

"Don't be so sure." Static replied. "Remember, these are gang bangers we're talkin' about. They're not what you'd call the loyal types. They'll follow Slade's orders up until they get bored and a few of 'em start thinking 'Hey, _I _should be the one who calls all the shots, not this weird one-eyed guy.' If Slade thinks he can make these Bang Babies dance to his music, he's gonna have to be one rockin' DJ."

Robin shook his head. "It's not that simple. It never is with Slade. What happened tonight was just the beginning of something bigger. I know it."

"What do you think he is planning, Robin?" Starfire asked.

"I don't know." Robin replied.

"Well, whatever he's planning, we'll stop it. See, he'll have more than just you guys to deal with this time." Static said. He snapped his fingers, which produced a few sparks of electricity. "This time, he's gonna have to deal with _me _too." he said with a smirk.

"Don't take this lightly, Static." Robin said. "We're not talking about your garden variety super villain here. Trust me. Slade is on a whole other level."

Static scoffed and shrugged. "How bad can he be?"

"You have no idea…." Raven commented.

"Remember the first time we met? When you and Batman visited Dakota to track down the Joker?" Static asked. "I kept feeling like I couldn't measure up to you two. But when the Joker captured the both of you and tried to turn you into mulch, guess who it was who bailed you out?" He crossed his arms over his chest and put on his trademark smile. "If I could take on that whack job, I can take on Slade."

Robin stared Static down, as though analyzing him. "Alright. If you say so." Robin finally replied. "Just remember one thing: We know Slade a lot better than you do. If you're going to help us bring him down, you need to trust us. When we tell you something, you listen. That clear?"

"Crystal." Static replied with a thumbs up.

"Good." Robin said. He turned to the rest of the team. "Tomorrow is probably going to be a pretty hectic day for us, so we'd all better turn in now and get as much rest as we can. We'll need it. Titans, dismissed."


	6. The Sixth Titan

Virgil's slumber was interrupted by a knocking at the door. He groaned irritably as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and got out of bed. _Damn it, Sharon_ he thought in the first half-second. The next half-second, he realized that he wasn't home, but rather still in Titans Tower. So…..what was that knocking at the door?

The knocking came again, making Virgil wince. "Okay, okay! I'm up, I'm up!" he said as he got out of bed and approached the door. Seriously, who the heck was knocking and rudely interrupting his beauty sleep?

Virgil pressed a button beside the door, revealing that it was Robin, wearing his trademark mask….as well as pajamas with the same color scheme as his costume. Whereas Virgil was only wearing a t-shirt and boxer shorts. The two stared at one another for a moment.

"…..Do you _sleep _with your mask on?" Static asked.

"…..Uh…..yes?" Robin answered, not sure what Static wanted to hear. "I see you don't."

Virgil's eyes widened as he slapped his naked face. "Oh snap, uh, two seconds." he said as he rushed over to his nightstand and hastily put on his mask. He walked back over to Robin. "Sorry about that."

"You're still only wearing your underwear." Robin pointed out.

"Bwah!" Static yelped as he tried to cover his shame with his hands.

"Aaaanyway." Robin said. "I wanted to get the Titans off to an early start today. With so many meta-humans on the loose now, we need to be ready at any moment."

A beeping was suddenly heard. It was the Titans communicator inside Robin's PJ pocket. He fished it out and inspected it, grumbling as he did so. "It's the commissioner. I need to take this. Don't suppose you mind waking up the others while I prepare today's briefing?"

"Don't worry, Robin. I'm all over it." Static assured. Nodding in satisfaction, Robin briskly marched down the hall as he began talking into the communicator.

_The boy wonder in PJs._ Static thought to himself. _This is turning out to be one weird Spring Break._

…

Once Robin was gone, Static changed into his costume, which was freshly dry-cleaned last night before bed. A sophisticated laundromat was yet another of the Titans Tower's many sweet features. After all, cleaning a superhero's uniform was often not as simple as just tossing it in the wash.

Anyway, decked out in uniform and ready to take on the day, Static began his task of waking up the other Titans. First on his stop was Cyborg's room. "Cyborg!" he hollered outside Cyborg's door. "Robin says to wake up!" He knocked on the door. No response. He knocked again, louder this time. "Yo! Cyborg!" he yelled again. He groaned in annoyance as he pressed the button on the side of the door and walked in.

Static let out a low whistle as he took in Cyborg's room, which was the computer club's dream come true. Monitors and control panels and a bunch of other technological stuff that Static couldn't even describe because he didn't even know the right words for it all covered the walls of the room. Lying on a table was Cyborg, sound asleep, snoring like a bear. It was slightly creepy, seeing the mechanized hero lying on a table like he was Frankenstein's monster, as was the cable that was plugged into his chest. Static guessed that it was a charger cord. Static walked up to the cord, unplugged it, then snapped his fingers in front of Cyborg's face. Nothing but more loud snoring in response.

"Huh. Heavy sleeper." Static mused to himself. He spotted a control panel on the side of the table and pressed the biggest, most obvious-looking button. The table tilted, bringing Cyborg upright, again just like Frankenstein's monster. Gravity began to take hold as Cyborg began tipping over. Halfway through falling, he woke up, and halfway into his yelling, Static 'caught' him with a Static bolt. "Morning sunshine." Static cheerfully said.

"Yo, what gives?" Cyborg grouchily demanded as Static pulled him back from his fall.

"Robin wants the other Titans up and at 'em. He figures that, with a city full of Bang Babies ready to wreak havoc at a moment's notice, it's probably better if we _not_ sleep in today." Static explained. Cyborg stood up as Static released his electrical hold on the metal hero. "Why don't you get breakfast started? I'll go wake up the others." he suggested.

"Oooooh…" Cyborg said as he greedily rubbed his hands. "Hope you like Meat Lover's Omelette, Static!" he said as he marched out of his room, suddenly much more enthusiastic about starting the day.

"What about Beast Boy?" Static asked, remembering that the green hero was a vegan.

"What _about _Beast Boy?" Cyborg sarcastically asked, not waiting up for an answer and turning the corner.

…

"Starfire!" Static hollered outside Starfire's door. "Rise and shine, girlfriend!"

No response. Static rolled his eyes. "Playing _this _game again, are we?" he muttered to himself as he hit the open button. Static's eyes were assaulted by fifty shades of pink as he entered Starfire's room. Pink sheets and pillows, posters of kittens and puppies on the wall, lacy tablecloths on top of the dresser that reminded Static of his grandmother's house, he could feel the testosterone draining from his body simply by standing in this room.

He saw Starfire's form shifting underneath the covers of the bed. "Sorry Star, but Robin wants us up and movin'." Static said. The covers continued to shift in silence. "Come on Star, we gotta get up."

The covers shifted again, but this time Static heard a strange gurgling sound coming from them, which took him aback. "Starfire?" he asked as he approached bed. "You okay?" he asked as he took a peek under the covers.

Something small and squishy lunged at him, adhering itself to his face.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Static screamed, bumbling around the room as he tried to get whatever it is off. "GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!" He finally ripped it off his face and tossed it back onto the bed. Static now saw that it was some kind of…grub…..thing….? Whatever it was, it was about to be fried as Static readied his electrical power.

"A most glorious morning!"

"Bwah!" Static yelped as he jumped in fright. The closet had suddenly opened and there was Starfire, decked out in her normal attire.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked.

"You got a facehugger in here!" Static shouted, pointing an accusing finger at the grub.

"Fear not, Static. That is only Silkie!" Starfire said as she floated over to the grub and started holding it tenderly like it was a baby.

"Silkie?" Static asked.

"He is my pet." Starfire said as he gently rubbed the grub's back, the creature…._purring_. It was _purring. _Grubs should not purr. It ain't right. "We rescued him from Killer Moth long ago, and he has been my most faithful companion ever since. _Haven't you my little bumgorf? Yes you have! Yes you have!_" Starfire gushed, going into full 'girl-in-love-with-cute-animal' mode, as she rubbed noses with the grub and started speaking in baby-talk.

"Well…uh…just….meet the others in the ops room when you're ready." Static said. "Robin says we've got a lot to do today, so wee need the early start."

"Rest assured, New-Friend-Static. I shall answer Duty's Call." Starfire assured. She went back to gushing over Silkie as Static slowly backed out of the room.

…

"Beast Boy! You in there?" Static hollered outside Beast Boy's door. No response. "I'm starting to sense a pattern here." Static said as he hit the open button which opened the door to Beast Boy's room.

Static nearly gagged as a wave of sheer _stank _overwhelmed him.

Quickly and desperately, he pulled up his shirt to cover his nose and mouth and proceeded into Beast Boy's room against all better judgement. A quick look around revealed the source of the stench. Dirty laundry. Lots of it. Everywhere. On the floor, in piles in the corners, piled up on the top bunk, even hanging from the ceiling fan. There was Beast Boy on the bottom bunk, sleeping in….

Oh God, Beast Boy wears tighty whiteys. That was a detail Static did _not_ need to know. He turned around on his heels, wishing to avert his gaze before the image could be burned into his brain forever (he feared that he was already too late), and fired a low-charge bolt over his shoulder at Beast Boy. The changeling yelped in shock, literally, as he awoke. "Put on some damn pants, take a shower and meet the others in the ops room." Static ordered before leaving the room, thankful for being able to breathe again.

…..

Static hollered nothing outside Raven's door. Nor did he knock. He didn't do anything except stand there.

Static couldn't quite put his finger on it. Maybe it was because Raven was kinda creepy for a superhero, what with portals of pure darkness being her favorite mode of transportation and all. Maybe it was because, between Starfire's grub and Beast Boy's stank, he was hesitant to see what kind of unpleasant surprises were in Raven's room. All he knew was that his gut was telling him that knocking on Raven's door was a bad idea.

Thankfully (or not, Static wasn't really sure), he didn't have to. The door opened itself and Raven floated out. Static couldn't make out anything inside Raven's room in the two seconds the door was open. It was way too dark in there. The door closed behind Raven, and the super heroine then stared down the Dakota youth.

"What?" she asked in a flat tone. A _threateningly_ flat tone, Static could've sworn.

"….Robin says to meet the others in the ops room." Static awkwardly said. Raven kept staring at him. "I mean, when you're ready. No rush."

Raven continued staring at him. It almost felt like she was staring _through _him. Static gave his biggest and best 'I know this is kinda awkward, please just ignore it' smile.

"…..Okay." Raven replied at last. With that, she opened a dark portal in the wall and floated through it, the portal disappearing behind her. Static let out a breath that he only just now realized he was holding.

…

As the team sat down and enjoyed their meat lover's omelette breakfast (sans Beast Boy who was content with sugary cereal and giving everyone Cyborg a dirty look), Robin began to address the team. "Alright team, here's the situation as it stands." the boy wonder began. "The JCPD is battening down the hatches, all their officers are on high alert and expecting the worst. We need to be just as vigilant. No telling when the first major Bang Baby attack will occur."

It was then that an alarm started blaring, flashing red lights illuminating the ops room as a map suddenly appeared on the big-screen TV. "Well, that didn't take long." Raven commented.

"Aw man!" Cyborg whined. "I didn't even get to finish my omelette!"

"Ha ha!" Beast Boy taunted.

Robin leaped clear over the kitchen table and landed on the couch. He pointed at the TV screen. "Trouble downtown! Titans, Go!"

…..

The Titans arrived downtown less than ten minutes after the word go. Robin arrived first on his motorcycle, the T-Car skidding to a halt right behind him. The other four Titans, plus Static, all piled out of the car with practiced ease. They then took their places. Cyborg and Beast Boy flanked Robin in prone positions, Cyborg warming up his sonic cannon and Beast Boy morphing into a tiger that was ready to pounce. Starfire and Raven hovered above the other three Titans, their eyes glowing green and white respectively.

Static was amazed by how well the five of them took their positions. So amazed that it kind of made him feel like a third wheel. Well, sixth wheel as the case may be. He tried to awkwardly position himself between Raven and Starfire, hovering on his saucer and electricity crackling from his fists. He hoped he looked intimidating enough.

Before them was definitely a Bang Baby, his back to the Titans. He was tall, around Cyborg's height, which was impressive given that that dude was a giant. He was wearing casual clothes, a sleeveless white t-shirt and blue jeans. That didn't surprise Static. Most Bang Babies in Dakota weren't fans of flashy costumes so they mostly just rolled in their street clothes. His skin had an odd, wooden appearance, and he had some stretchy powers as well, if the elongated arm reaching into the display window of a jewelry store was any indication. His other hand was holding a burlap sack, no doubt full of ill-gotten goods.

"Hold it right there!" Robin yelled at the metahuman. He looked over his shoulder at the Titans, giving Static a better look at his face. He had hard eyes and a jaw that looked like it could crush steel. He also wore a very confidant smirk on his face.

"Heeeeeyyyy…the Teen Titans." he greeted in a deep, baritone voice. "I was wondering when you guys would show."

"What do you think you're doing?" Robin asked.

"What does it look like?" the Bang Baby asked as he retracted his arm and stuffed the jewels into his bag.

"It appears as though you are taking that which does not belong to you!" Starfire yelled.

"I think that was a rhetorical question, Star." Cyborg pointed out.

"If you thought you could just take whatever you want in this city, you've got another thing coming." Robin said.

The Bang Baby gave a low, threatening chuckle as he turned around, fully facing the Titans now. "You don't remember me, do you sidekick?"

Robin started growling and Static swore he saw a vein twitching on his forehead. "Am I supposed to?" Robin asked through gritted teeth.

_Oooooh, he pressed the 'sidekick' button_. Static thought. _He shouldn't had did that._

"Ten months ago. You busted me for attempted robbery." the Bang Baby said.

"I bust a _lot _of low-life thieves." Robin growled.

He chuckled again. "Course you don't remember me. I mean, why would you? I was a nobody in your eyes." the Bang Baby put on a sadistic grin. "But not no more. Call me Jackie Robinson, cuz as of last night, I'm officially in the Show. I even got a new name. 'Brute Root.' Whaddaya think?"

"I think you're a dime-a-dozen thief who sold his soul to a madman for power." Robin spat.

"What can I say? It was a good deal." Brute Root said. With that, he was officially tired of talking. He stamped his feet into the ground, apparently burying them in the concrete. He then balled his hands into fists and stretched them at the Titans.

"Titans, Go!" Robin yelled as the Titans scattered to avoid the incoming enlarged fists, which slammed into nothing but more concrete. Robin tossed some explosive discs at Brute Root, which Cyborg and Starfire complimented with a volley of sonic blasts and star bolts. Brute held up his forearms as the explosives and energy blasts hit their marks and detonated. As the smoke cleared, the Titans could see that Brute Root was still standing, and that leaves were beginning to grow from his forearms as he wore a wicked grin.

"My turn." he said before thrusting his forearms out, firing the leaves at the Titans. Starfire, Raven and Static all took to the skies as Robin, Cyborg and Beast Boy all took cover behind a car. It was a good thing they did. The leaves flew fast and embedded themselves into the car, evidently sharp enough to puncture steel.

From above, Starfire continued reigning starbolts down on the Bang Baby's head, but they didn't seem to do much good. Figuring it was his turn, Static fired a huge bolt at Brute Root, but it was even more useless then Starfire's attacks. "Right. He's made of wood." Static commented. "My powers can't do jack against him."

"Let's try mine then." Raven said as her eyes glowed an intense pure white. "Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she cried as she thrust out a hand at a nearby mailbox, wrapping it in a black aura then 'throwing' it at the meta-human. Brute Root smacked the mailbox with ease.

"That the best you got?!" he demanded of the Titans.

"Not yet." Raven replied as she picked up a nearby SUV with her magic this time. She hurled it at the villain. Amazingly, not only did he catch the SUV in mid-air, he didn't even budge from where he was standing. With a grunt of exertion, he tossed the vehicle back at the three flying heroes, making them scatter to avoid the flying truck.

Thundering footsteps drew the Bang Baby's attention back to ground level, and he saw a green rhino charging right at him. Brute Root enlarged his left arm, stretching it out and smacking the creature aside…..

Just in time to see a flying disc followed by a sonic blast heading towards him.

*BOOM!*

"Ah, the Sonic-Boom." Cyborg mused as he blew the exhaust smoke from his sonic cannon. "A classic."

A giant wooden fist extended out from the smoke cloud, knocking the automaton flat on his butt. The fist swung around to catch Robin, but he was easily able to jump over it. The smoke cleared, revealing Brute Root, sans shirt, wooden skin slightly burnt but otherwise unharmed and unmoved from where he was standing.

"Robin!" Starfire cried out in worry before diving in to give her boyfriend covering fire via more star bolts and a few eye laser beams just for good measure. Meanwhile, Raven and Static landed near Cyborg and Beast Boy to check on their comrades.

"You guys okay?" Static asked as he helped Cyborg up while Raven did the same for a dazed and confused Beast Boy.

"He tanked the Sonic-Boom?" Cyborg wondered aloud. "Man, what does it take to knock this guy down?"

"Hold on a sec." Static muttered as a thought occurred to him and he looked as the Brute Root tried to catch both Robin and Starfire with giant, wooden hands. He didn't just not budge when he got hit with the SUV or the Sonic-Boom. He hadn't budged _at all_. He never moved from where he was standing in the middle of the road the whole fight. Not even once. His eyes widened as he looked at the villain's legs.

"Check out his feet!" Static said as he pointed. The Titans saw how the limbs were somehow buried in the concrete. "Brute Root is…..er…_rooted_ into the ground! That's why he hasn't budged an inch no matter what we threw at him!"

"So what do we do?" Beast Boy asked.

Static smirked. "Ever pull a weed?" he asked.

The three Titans around him nodded before the four took off to initiate their plan. Static zapped a nearby street lamp and launched it at Brute Root, wrapping it around the villain, tying his arms to his torso and then started to pull. "Come oooonnnnnn…" he grunted with effort as he tried uproot the bad guy, but he wasn't budging. Brute Root growled as he strained against his bindings. It didn't take him long to break free of the lamp post entirely, shattering it to pieces with a roar of victory.

Cyborg leapt on Brute Root from behind, grappling him in a full nelson. He pulled up, opting to uproot the meta-human with a little good ol' fashioned elbow grease. Brute Root smirked as more razor sharp leaves sprouted from his back. Cyborg, knowing what that meant, wisely decided to let him go and leap for cover. The leaves on the tree-man's back shot after the fleeing android, eliciting oddly girly squeals as they hit their mark.

It was Beast Boy's turn now, as the changeling transformed into a mouse that was able to crawl up Brute Root's leg unnoticed, and then morph into a giant pterosaur right above him. He seized his shoulders with his giant talons and started trying to fly up. The Bang Baby tried to grab at the flying reptile's legs, forcing the changeling to shift tactics. He let the mutant go, and morphed into an elephant in mid-air, landing just in front of Brute Root. Beast Boy turned around and, with a trumpet of effort, wrapped his trunk around Brute Root's torso, positioned his tusks underneath his arms, and started pulling up. Brute Root smirked as he made needly branches sprout around his torso, stabbing into Beast Boy's trunk enough to cause intense pain. His trunk flinched just enough for Brute Root to lift the changeling up and, in a feat of true super-human strength, pulled a suplex on the green elephant, the creature landing on its back with a tremendous crash behind him.

"We can't even touch him." Robin growled in frustration.

"I don't need to." Raven said as her eyes began glowing white again. "Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" The Bang Baby found himself wrapped in a dark aura, unable to move, and Raven started pulling up.

"That's it Raven! Keep going!" Robin cheered as it looked like the human-tree was finally starting to be uprooted. With a snarl, Brute Root began to stretch out his arms again, trying to fight against the dark magic containing him and restricting his movement. A vein in Raven's forehead began thumping rhythmically as trying to keep the tree-man contained was becoming harder as his mass expanded. One of his arms finally broke free as a wooden fist speeded towards Raven, hitting her right in the chest and sending her flying. Static was able to catch her before she landed on solid concrete.

"You okay?" he asked as Raven quickly collected herself and floated out of Static's grasp.

"I'm fine." Raven irritably replied. "But nothing's working. We can't uproot him."

Static looked down on Brute Root, still deftly able to fend off the Titans without moving once from his spot. That's when inspiration struck Static out of nowhere. He smiled widely as Raven. "Maybe we don't need to uproot _him_." Static said. "Maybe we just uproot the ground around him."

"Are you sure that'll work?" Raven asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Worth a try." Static replied with a shrug. Evidently satisfied with that answer, Raven flew in towards Brute Root, her eyes glowing white once again.

"Everyone get clear! Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she cried as she threw her hands out. This time, a dark aura didn't coat Brute Root, but rather a circular portion of the street around him.

"What the?" Brute Root said as six radial feet of concrete around him was torn from the rest of the road and lifted up into the air, taking the Bang Baby with it. The tree-man waved his arms in circular motions to maintain balance until Raven brought the floating concrete platform to a stop several feet in the air. Static and Starfire floated on either side of Raven, Beast Boy circling around the meta-criminal as a buzzard. Brute Root chuckled deviously. "Go ahead! Lift me up as high as you like! I can still do this!" he said as he sprouted more leaves and fired them at the flying heroes. They were all able to dodge the projectiles save for Raven, who had to summon a protective bubble of dark energy to protect herself.

"Any other bright ideas?!" Raven called to Static.

"….One more." Static replied after a moment's thought. He started to fly in a low circle around the platform. "Yo Bark-For-Brains!" he yelled. He stopped moving once the Bang Baby's attention was focused squarely on him. His hands began glowing with electrical power, making Brute Root laugh.

"I'm sorry, but didn't you try zappin' me before?" the tree-man asked. "That didn't work out too well."

"Because you were rooted in the ground like a lightning rod." Static quipped back. "Any current I zapped into you passed through you and diffused into the ground. But you're cut off from the ground now."

"So?" Brute Root asked.

"Little known fact about concrete, woodsman." Static went on, his grin only getting wider. "It's not just cement. There's also plenty of metal in the mix as well. _Conductible _metal. So if I sent a current through it right now, hovering in the air as it is, it would have nowhere to go….except for _you_."

Allowing himself a second to savor the 'oh crap' look on Brute Root's face, Static zapped the concrete. It glowed and sparked with power as the current flowed through it….

And directly into the Brute's roots. The meta-human seized up and screamed in agony as the electric current traveled up his feet and into his body. Static cut the power after a few seconds of the onslaught. Smoking, Brute Root fell flat on his back, his feet still stuck in the concrete.

Raven gently set the floating slab of concrete back where it was. Starfire, Beast Boy and Static landed next to her. Robin walked up to the sorceress and put a hand on her shoulder. "Great work, Raven." he said.

"Thanks, but…it was actually Static's idea." Raven replied with slight hesitation.

"And it was also him who electrocuted the platform, thus dealing the final blow!" Starfire enthusiastically added.

Cyborg walked over, slowly and awkwardly, standing rigidly and appeared to be in a great deal of pain judging from the look on his face. "Great…work…Static…" Cyborg tried to say through gritted teeth and agony.

"Uh…..Thanks." Static replied. "You okay man?"

Cyborg answered by turning around, revealing a dozen razor leaves lodged in his metallic rear end.

"_Ooooooh….._" Static and other four Titans all said as they winced.

"Raven, see if you can't give Cyborg a hand." Robin instructed. He looked up to the Tamaranean hero floating above them. "Starfire, get Brute Root de-rooted. I've got a few questions for him once he comes to."

…..

When Brute Root finally regained consciousness, the first thing he saw was Robin's scowling face. He immediately noticed that it was upside-down. Then he noticed that everything else was upside down too. He tried to struggle, dig his feet into something, only to find that his feet were bound and there was nothing for them to root into. "Where…..?" Brute Root began to ask.

"In an alley, hanging from a fire escape by a cable that I control with my utility belt." Robin answered. "Now then, we have about five minutes before the JCPD come to take you in, which is just fine by me because this shouldn't take long. I only have a few questions for you that you should be able to answer."

"And why should I tell you a damn thing? _Sidekick._" Brute Root asked, his brain functions finally fully restored. Robin's eye twitched a little at that. He then pressed a button on his belt. The Bang Baby shouted in fear as he fell to the ground, landing hard on his head. He was then pulled back up by the cable still binding his feet, just as quickly as he fell, until he was eye-level with Robin again, his vision a little blurrier this time.

"Because I can do _that_ if you don't cooperate." Robin said. "Now, let's start with something simple. What's Slade planning?"

"Who?" Brute Root asked.

Robin pressed a button on his utility belt again. Once again, Brute Root was dropped on the ground on reeled back up like the catch of the day.

"Don't play dumb." Robin said, his scowl intensifying. "I _know _you work for Slade."

"Slade." Brute Root said. "Slade…..Slade…..Slade….yeah, I guess his name _did _come up once or twice last night."

"What's he planning?" Robin demanded.

"Hell if I know, sidekick. Your guess is as good as mine." Brute Root said.

"Why were you robbing for him?" Robin demanded.

"I wasn't robbing for _him. _I was robbing for _me_." Brute Root said with a grin.

Robin narrowed his eyes at the meta-human. "Slade gives you and a hundred other low-lives superpowers…..and then just lets you all roam free, doing whatever you want without demanding anything of you in return? I don't buy it."

"I know, right?" Brute Root said, his grin growing more wide and malicious, taking delight in the boy wonder's frustrations. "It's such a sweet deal, I can hardly believe it myself."

Robin paused, and Brute braced himself for another drop. It didn't come. Robin just continued to stare into the Bang Baby's eyes. "I'm only going to ask this one more time." Robin said in an eerily even tone. "What is Slade planning?"

"I don't know. But I know where you can find him." Brute Root said. He grinned. "_Try checkin' yo mama's house_."

The boy wonder gave no response. Instead, he reached into his utility belt and pulled out something resembling an aerosol can. He used it to spray a particular spot on the wall of the building the fire escape was attached to. He then pulled out a lighter and flicked it alight. He held the lighter to the spot he sprayed on the wall…..which promptly burst into a small fireball. He turned toward Brute Root and narrowed his eyes.

"….You wouldn't." Brute said, calling out the boy wonder's unspoken bluff.

Robin pushed another button on his utility belt, dropping Brute Root once again. This time however, he came to a stop about six feet above the ground. Robin landed on his feet next to him. He then started searching through the nearby garbage cans. Paper, bits of wood, anything that would obviously burn, and gathered it beneath Brute Root's head. He sprayed the pile down with the mysterious flammable substance, then lit it up, creating a roaring bonfire right below the wooden meta-human. Already, he could feel the heat on his very skin building.

As the bonfire below him burned, sparks began popping up and nearly missing Brute Root, making him flail in panic. "I know Slade's planning something. Something big." Robin said. "So either tell me anything and everything you know about his new operation, _or I turn you into firewood._"

"You're bluffing, sidekick!" Brute Root hollered, trying and failing to hide the panic in his voice.

"You know I'm not." Robin said with a slight smirk.

He pressed a button on his belt, which dropped Brute Root closer to the bonfire by about six inches, earning a yelp of fright from the meta-criminal. "You keep calling me 'sidekick.' Like it's an insult. But you're forgetting a very important detail."

Robin pressed the button again, and Brute dropped another six inches.

"It's not that I used to be Batman's _sidekick_…"

Brute screamed in horror as he dropped a whole foot, the flames just inches above his head. He looked up at Robin, and found to his terror that he was wearing a truly evil grin.

"It's that I used to be _Batman's _sidekick…"

Another two inches, which drew the most horrified scream out of the Bang Baby's mouth yet. "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! I'LL TALK!" he began yelling. "SOME DUDE SHOWED UP AT MY CRIB LAST NIGHT AFTER THE BANG! SAID I WORKED FOR SLADE NOW! SAID THAT WE'D BE IN TOUCH!"

"That's all?" Robin impatiently asked as he clicked the button and dropped the tree-man another inch.

"I'M JUST A GRUNT, MAN! I DON'T KNOW NOTHIN' ABOUT WHAT SLADE'S PLANNIN', I SWEAR!" Brute Root pleaded.

"This dude. Describe him." Robin ordered.

"BLACK SPANDEX! GOT A STICK ON HIS BACK OR SOMETHIN'!"

"Nightstrike." Robin said to himself as he pushed the button one final time, reeling Brute Root all the way back up to the top of the fire escape. Grabbing another spray can from his belt, Robin sprayed some fire extinguishing foam on the bonfire and walked out of the alley, leaving Brute Root to hang and await police pickup.

"What was that all about?" Static asked as Robin emerged from the alley and rejoined the Titans in the middle of the street. "Dude was screamin' his head off a minute ago."

"Interrogation." Robin answered plainly.

"What kind of interrogation were you doin'?" Static asked.

"Sounded like Gotham-Style interrogation." Beast Boy commented with a wry smirk.

"Brute Root doesn't know anything." Robin told the team, changing the topic to the matter at hand. "He's just an ignorant pawn. Same is likely true of the other Bang Babies. I doubt any of them know what Slade's goals are. For the moment, at least."

"So, what now?" Cyborg asked. "OW!"

"Hold still." Raven scolded as he slowly and delicately pulled out another leaf from Cyborg's bum.

"We go back to the Tower." Robin said. "We rest. We wait for the next one."

"The next Bang Baby?" Static asked.

"Brute Root was just the first. More like him are going to follow." Robin said. "Until we can figure out exactly _what_ Slade is planning, all we can do is deal with these meta-criminals as they come."

"So basically our schedules are gonna be jam-packed with kickin' butt?" Beast Boy asked. "I'm down for it."

"Me too. OW!"

"Stop. Moving." Raven said.

…..

Thankfully, Brute Root seemed to be the only Bang Baby the Teen Titans would have to deal with that day, leaving the rest of their schedules clear. Upon returning to the Tower, they all resumed their daily routines. Cyborg was working on the T-Car, Beast Boy was playing his video games, Starfire was trying to drag Raven out of her room and to the mall for some shopping, and Robin returned to his crime-fighting-related work.

As for Static, he decided to spend the rest of the day doing something about the guest room he was staying in, which was for all intents and purposes _his _room at the moment. It looked like he was going to be crashing in the Tower for a little while longer, so he should probably settle in a little more. He went to his backpack and unpacked some of his things. He put his CDs and electronic devices on top of the dresser, hung up his clothes in the closet, and hung up some posters on the walls. Soon the faces of Kuf Knotz, NF and of course Jay Z graced the walls of the room, and Static felt just a little more at home.

It was then that he heard a knock on his door. Static opened it and standing there was Robin. "Mind if I come in? We need to talk about something." the boy wonder said.

"Sure." Static said, stepping aside to let Robin into the room. He walked past the Dakota teen, looked around, and nodded.

"So, I see you've been doing some redecoration." Robin commented.

"Yeah. Figured I might as well, seeing as it looks like I might be here a while. Though I still need a stereo before it really starts feeling like a home away from home." Static commented.

Robin turned towards Static and smiled. "I'll see if I can't ask Cyborg about that. He's got enough spare electronic parts lying around that he might be able to slap together a boom box for you."

"Thanks Robin, but I don't wanna make anyone go to the trouble." Static said. "You've done enough just letting me crash at your place and roll with your crew."

"Funny you should mention my crew." Robin said with a wry smile. "We've actually been talking about you earlier. I was really impressed with how you handled Brute Root, and so was the rest of the team."

Static shrugged. "Raven did most of the heavy lifting. All I really did was zap the dude."

"But it was _your _idea." Robin said. "You were able to figure out a way around Brute Root's defenses when none of us could. That kind of outside-the-box thinking is a valuable talent. I was planning on giving this to you anyway, Static. But today's fight proves that you've earned it."

Robin reached into his belt and handed something to Static. Static held it in his hands, and his eyes widened in disbelief. The round shape, the iconic T on it, the nine-note beeping ringtone it did when he pushed a certain button on the side. It was unmistakable. A Titan Communicator.

"Static. From this day forward, consider yourself an Honorary Titan." Robin said with a proud smile.

"For real? No playing?" Static asked.

"No playing." Robin said as he crossed his arms.

Static returned the boy wonder's earnest smile. "Thanks Robin. This….This means a lot to me." he said. Static had worked with other heroes before. Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, just to name a few. Not only was it always both an honor and a pleasure, but more than that it made him feel….validated. Like, knowing that there were other heroes acknowledging his existence proved that what he was doing actually mattered. He was actually making a difference.

But never, not once, had a fellow hero reach out to him the way Robin just did. Not only was he acknowledging and validating Static, he was _welcoming _him. _Accepting _him. Saying 'you're good enough to be one of us.' Not 'you have potential,' but 'you've realized that potential.' As far as Static was concerned, the communicator he held in his hand was the final badge of honor. The final piece of evidence. He was a true Super Hero. The name 'Teen Titan' suddenly made a lot more sense to him, because he had never felt so big, so like a _Titan _amongst men, than he did now.

"You won't regret this." Static said as he pocketed the comm.

Robin's smile suddenly went from genuine to mischievous. "No, but _you_ might." He pointed over Static's shoulder. Static followed Robin's finger and saw Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire all standing just outside Static's door. They were also wearing mischievous smiles. "See…..we can't _officially _make you a Titan…until you've been properly initiated."

Cyborg pulled out a pink wig, Beast Boy a pink dress, and Starfire a rubber chicken.

"….Oh no." Static said, suddenly getting a bad feeling as the three heroes closed in on him far quicker than he would like. "No. No! Nuh-uh! In the immortal words of Will Smith, _HELL NAW_." His protests fell on deaf ears as they grabbed him forcefully and dragged him out of the room. Robin tried and failed to contain his laughter as his team dragged Static into the hallway to begin the initiation.

There was no longer any doubt in Robin's mind. Static would fit in just fine.

….

**Some people may complain that Robin was bit too mean to Brute Root in this chapter, but I feel it's important to remind everyone just **_**whose **_**sidekick Robin used to be. You don't get mentored by a guy THAT scary without picking up a few things.**

**Speaking of Brute Root, big thanks to Zgamer for coming up with him. Z's actually come up with a LOT of Bang Baby OCs for the purposes of this fanfic. Seriously. Dude's like a printing machine. Except a lot more OCs from him in the future. Don't worry though, I'll be sure to use others as well, and maybe even a few of my own.**

**It's not too late! Send in those PMs, Original Characters! Join Slade's Army of Evil today!**

**Warning: While I won't necessarily say no to mary-sues, I will not hesitate to beat them severely with the nerf-bat if they come across as too powerful. So yeah. Try to keep it simple, folks. Nothing too elaborate. Just watch the original Static Shock cartoon to get a general idea of what I'm looking for. It's available over on (It's been GREAT for research purposes, btw). Plus, it's just a really good show that deserves more attention.**


	7. Meanwhile

**Well, it seems like Static has been fitting in quite well over in Jump City. Though, I wonder how Gear's been doing….**

….

"Don't suppose he's called you at all lately?" Mr. Hawkins asked.

"Nope. Can't even reach him on the shock vox for some reason." Richie said.

Mr. Hawkins sighed at that. He continued to watch the coffee pot as it filled up with that precious black morning / early afternoon gold. Richie was currently sitting in the kitchen with him, offering his best friend's father what support he could.

"E-mail?" Mr. Hawkins asked.

"Nope." Richie replied. "I know. It's like he dropped off the face of the earth. I don't get it either." Mr. Hawkins sighed wearily. Virgil had been gone for a grand total of five days now.

Covering for Static was hardly a problem at first. Richie, as Gear, had already told the press that Static had gone off in pursuit of the H.I.V.E. Five in the interest of bringing them to justice, and that the remaining three Dakota heroes would cover for him while he was away. Covering for Virgil Hawkins, on the other hand, was a little bit trickier. Mr. Hawkins and Richie had both said that Virgil had gone on a road trip with some new friends he made at school for Spring Break and should be back soon. They couldn't claim he was staying with friends or family, as one simple phone call by somebody suspicious enough (i.e., Sharon) would disprove that claim. That said though, Mr. Hawkins wasn't shy about the fact that he and Virgil got into a fight just before he left, and claimed that part of the reason he went on vacation without contacting his immediate friends or family was because he needed time to clear his mind. Hell, maybe t_hat's_ the actual reason he hasn't contacted them all this time.

Things got a little more complicated after something the media is already calling 'The New Bang.' By now, the word was out that the thing the H.I.V.E. had stolen from Alva Industries was Bang Baby gas and not only did it find its way to Jump City, but a second Big Bang of sorts had already happened there. Jump City now had just as many Bang Babies on the loose as Dakota had during the height of the original Big Bang, possibly even more. Luckily, Jump City had five heroes to round them all up.

Correction, six. Static had been working with the Titans since Monday. At first it was to help them track down the H.I.V.E., but now it was to help the Titans round up as many meta-human criminals as possible. As Static told the Jump Report, he certainly had extensive experience fighting Bang Babies. 'Just ask anyone in Dakota.' he said. He said that he planned on staying as long as it took to get the job done. The media was already calling him 'The Sixth Titan.'

Mr. Hawkins sat down next to Richie and looked over his shoulder at his laptop. Richie turned it around to make it easier for the man to see. It was another online article about how Static helped the Titans fend off another Bang Baby attack, a pair of meta-humans calling themselves Torque and Featherweight. "Well, at least Virgil is staying with the right kind of crowd." Mr. Hawkins noted as he looked at one photo of Static fighting alongside the Titans.

"Yeah. Apparently he's got his own room at Titans Tower." Richie said. "So we don't have to worry about him sleeping on the street or going hungry or anything like that."

Mr. Hawkins looked away from the screen and stared deep into his mug. "This isn't - "

"It _is _my fault, and we both know it." Mr. Hawkins interrupted Richie's attempt at easing his guilt. "I came down too hard on Virgil. Drove him away."

"You were worried about him." Richie said. "What dad in your position wouldn't be?"

"Problem isn't that I was worried about him." Mr. Hawkins said. "Problem is that I didn't respect him." He got up and left the kitchen. Intrigued, Richie minimized the window on his laptop and followed Mr. Hawkins into the living room. He was standing in front of the hutch, on top of which was a collection of photos, both colored photos of immediate family and black and white photos of generations past. He saw Richie and gestured him over. Richie obliged.

Mr. Hawkins looked over all the photos on the hutch. "My wife was a paramedic." he said as he pointed to her picture. "Her father was a doctor, while her mother was part of the civil rights movement." he pointed to the corresponding photos. "My father was part of the civil rights movement, like my wife's mother. My grandfather fought in World War II. I'm a social worker, myself. Though I was a field medic in the marine corps before that"

He paused as he held up a photo of a younger Virgil Hawkins, playing basketball with other youths at the Freeman Community Center. "With a family tree like that, I shouldn't be surprised that Virgil turned out a hero. Even if he never got superpowers, he still would've been one. A police officer, or a fireman, or a doctor. Helping people, righting wrongs, standing against injustice, it's all in his blood."

He put down the photo. "These last five days have shown me just how much of a blind fool I was. I had thought that Virgil needed guidance to decide his future, to decide what his path in life should be. But now I see…he already made that decision a long time ago. He made that decision, and I didn't respect what he decided."

He turned to Richie. "Keep trying to contact Virgil. When you do….tell him I'm sorry. Tell him I was wrong and he was right. And tell him to come home."

…..

"Oy vey….." Richie muttered to himself as he kept tinkering with the shock vox. He checked the circuitry for the ninth time and, just like the other eight times, it all worked perfectly. "V-Man? You there? Hellooooooo?" he asked over the vox. "Come on, Virgil. I know you're there."

Silence was his only reply.

"Come on, you raised me while you were in Africa once. _Africa_. So don't even _try _to tell me the west coast is beyond effective range." Richie scolded his best friend. Again, silence. He smacked the vox against the desk, knowing it wouldn't do any good, but he did it anyway for the sake of catharsis. Within seconds, his super-brain came up with dozens of different ideas on how to reach Virgil, all of which were shot down just as fast as Richie had already tried them all. Vox, cell phone, e-mail, zip results. Whatever the communication problem was, it appeared to be strictly on Virgil's end, which meant there was nothing Richie could do short of flying to Jump City himself and demanding what an update in person.

Maybe Virgil had neglected to recharge his Vox? Though that wouldn't explain the lack of e-mail or social media replies. Maybe the Titans Tower has crappy internet access? That was unlikely, as everything else in that facility was pretty state-of-the-art. What could possibly be preventing Virgil from contacting him all this time?

It was then that Back Pack started beeping, receiving a call. Richie rolled his eyes. Moments like these made him regret telling Dakota PD his number. They've been calling him a lot in the last week or so. Richie pressed a button on Back Pack. "What is it?" he asked.

"Hello, Gear."

Richie froze as he recognized that voice. A voice that did _not _belong to the Commissioner. "Edwin Alva….?" he asked.

"Good to hear that you recognize me." Alva's voice replied. "My time is precious, and I'm sure yours is as well. So I'll skip the pleasantries and cut right to the chase. I have some information regarding the New Bang that you may find useful."

"….I'm listening." Richie replied.

"I won't part with this information freely. First, you have to do something for me." Alva replied.

"Of course I do." Richie sighed. "Okay, what do you need me to do? Lemme guess, design your latest 'catch a meta-human so I can dissect them' machine?"

"Nothing of the sort, I assure you." Alva replied. "All I'm asking you to do is catch a bad guy, something that I understand you're quite good at. For the last two weeks, I've noticed that my incoming chemical shipments are much lighter than they should be. My warehouses aren't holding as much as they were yesterday. I have reason to suspect it's because someone's been stealing from them."

"What kind of chemicals?" Richie replied.

"That's none of your concern." Alva sternly said. "All you need to know is that the next shipment will be arriving at Warehouse 23 over in the industrial district between 8 and 9pm. It will be the largest shipment yet, so I have no doubts that our thief will show himself there. Catch him for me, and I will be inclined to tell you what you need to know." With that, Alva hung up.

"Back up to your old shady business, I see." Richie commented. He had half a mind to flake on Alva purely out of spite. It was his company that created the quantum vapor, which created the Bang Babies, which created the worst crime wave in Dakota's history. That wasn't even mentioning the times he tried to kidnap Static.

….But he said he had information about the New Bang, the one that Virgil's currently dealing with over in Jump City. He may not be able to reach him, but that still doesn't mean he shouldn't try to do whatever he can to help. With a sigh resignation, he picked up the shock vox, but this time it wasn't for another vain attempt to raise Virgil.

"Shenice. Adam. Once your patrols are complete, report back to base." Richie said as he donned his helmet. "Looks like we've got a mission."

…

"I don't like this." She-Bang grumbled as she, Gear and Rubberband Man stood on the rooftop of an Alva Industries warehouse later that night. "Corporate big-shot asks us to pull a job for him on the down low? Way too shady."

"I'm with her." Rubberband Man agreed. "And this ain't just _any _corporate bigshot, either. This is Edwin Alva we're talkin' about. The same guy who _kidnapped _us."

"I don't like it either." Gear conceded to his two compatriots. "But, Alva promised us information that Static needs for his work in Jump City."

"Information that you can't even _get _to Static." Adam pointed out. "He's been dark for days."

"I'm working on fixing up that bridge. We'll cross it when we get to it." Gear assured. "Besides, all he's asking us to do is pinch a thief - nothing we haven't done before."

"Might be easier if we knew what was being stolen though." She-Bang said.

"We know that the thief is interested in the crates below us, which contain chemicals. Do we _really _wanna know all the sordid details of Alva's machinations here?" Gear asked. Before either of the other two heroes could give an answer, Back Pack started beeping. "Oh ho, a new challenger appears….." Gear commented as the new data whizzed across his HUD. "Heat Signature coming in from the south. Moving towards this location and moving fast. Adam, you're up."

Rubberband Man enlarged and stretched out his ear, then pressed it to the ground below them. "Opening window…..closing it…..He's already prying open a crate."

"That's our cue." Gear said. "Let's make this entrance look _good_."

She-Bang smashed open the nearest skylight with her fist and jumped in. Gear was close behind, his jet-blades activating to slow his descent, and Rubberband Man bounced in as a ball, but stretched back out with enlarged fists, ready to fight.

The thief turned on his heels towards the three heroes. He wore a skin-tight spandex jumpsuit, complete with gloves and boots, and a cape that had definitely seen better days judging from the ragged holes in it. By far the most eye-catching feature was the skull mask with a red X on the forehead. "Well, how do you do." the stranger greeted.

"Stop right there, evil-doer!" Gear shouted.

"….Seriously?" Adam asked.

"What? Pre-battle one-liners were always Static's thing, not mine." Richie defended.

"For good reason, I see." Adam quipped.

"Look, I'm not here to cause trouble." the stranger said as he took out a few red metal rods from the crate and slid them into the pouches on his belt. Alva's missing chemical compounds, Gear presumed. "I just wanna grab my xenothium and be on my way."

"It _ain't _yours, punk!" She-Bang growled. She charged and leapt forward with a leaping kick. The stranger ducked, She-Bang flying over his head entirely. He did a few front flips towards Richie and Adam. The latter stretched out a fist, but the stranger leapt over it and used it as a trampoline to jump into the air, allowing him to land a perfect kick right in Adam's face. The rubbery hero was sent flying through the air. Gear activated his jet blades to gain a height advantage on the stranger just as She-Bang and Rubberband Man recovered from their blows. The stranger looked around at the three heroes.

"Come on, kids." he mocked as he tapped his forehead. "X marks the spot."

She-Bang charged forward with another leaping kick while Rubberband Man inflated his fist and shot it forward.

The thief vanished into thin air, as if teleporting.

Unable to stop their attacks, She-Bang collided into Rubber's fist, sending her flying back in the direction she came. "What the?" Adam asked as he stretched his neck around 360 degrees to try to find the costumed thief.

"A stretchy superhero? Really?" a voice said from above. Adam looked up and saw the freakshow standing on top of a large crate above him. "You do realize there are like, three other heroes with that exact same power set, right?"

Adam growled, then elongated his torso to make himself taller and inflated his fists again. The stranger then thrust out both of his hands, holding them together. Each glove had a different half of a large red X on its palm, and the X they formed as he held his hands together started to glow. A half-second later, his gloves fired a large red projectile at Adam's chest, an X-shaped binding that tired his arms to his torso. He then fired several more such bindings at his other limbs, pinning them to the floor and to other crates. The stranger turned and saw She-Bang flying at him boot-first again.

Then he vanished again. She-Bang flew through the air that the thief once occupied and smashed into a crate. The thief reappeared on top of another crate.

"STOP DOING THAT!" She-Bang shouted at the skeletal fiend.

The thief started doing backflips as he saw projectiles flying through the air towards him. The zap caps detonated on impact, the thief just barely dodging them. He landed on the floor, Gear landing close to him. "Quick question - shouldn't there be _four _of you?" the thief asked. "Where's that Static Shock guy?"

"First of all, it's just Static." Gear said. "Second, he's not here right now. You're dealing with _me_."

"And you are…..?" the thief prompted.

"Gear's my name. Technology is my game." Gear said as he took out another zap cap and threw it. The thief fired an x-shaped red laser bolt at the cap, detonating it in mid-air.

"So basically, you're into gadgets." the thief said.

"Oh what? You're gonna make fun of me for that like every other villain?" Gear asked.

"Hey, I'm not shaming you." the thief assured. "For what it's worth, I'm into gadgets too." He held up his gloves, which had red X marks on the tops of his hands. Those marks then enlarged and started spinning, turning into buzzsaws.

"Uh-oh." Gear said as the thief lunged forward and began slashing at Gear, the technopath just barely able to dodge the slashes. "You know, you have me at a disadvantage." Gear said as he danced around the thief. "You know my name, but I don't really know yours."

"Call me Red X." the thief introduced himself with another attempted slash at Gear's chest.

"I like it. Simple and self-explanatory." Gear replied. Red X then fired the two X's at Gear. They both missed, the blades embedding themselves in the crate behind him. "Ah-ha! You missed!" Gear taunted.

"Wait for it." Red X said.

Gear noticed that the X's in the crate were beeping. Gear instinctively dove for cover as they detonated. Gear breathed a sigh of relief….

Until he saw several other red X's hit the floor next to him. They were all beeping too. Gear ran for cover as the X's all detonated. Red X suddenly teleported in front of him. Gear reached for more zap caps on his belt…..only to find he had run out. "Looks like you've ran out of toys." Red X said as he reached for his own utility belt….only to find it empty.

"So have you." Gear pointed out.

"Yeah." Red X conceded. "But can you do _this_?" Red X then lunged forward with his fist, ready to deliver a vicious punch.

Since he first realized his powers and became an actual superhero, Richie had started an after-school workout regimen on Virgil's advice. Richie didn't think it was necessary at first, since his powers lied in his brain rather than his body, but Virgil had insisted. He said that, regardless of the nature of one's powers, the superhero lifestyle was a physically demanding one, which meant that staying in shape was crucial. So Richie had agreed to work out with Virgil in the Community Center's weight room every weekday after school. The regimen, combined with the fact that puberty had been fairly kind to him, meant that Richie's strength and stamina had improved significantly since last year, not to mention that his upper-body muscles were notably larger and more distinctly-toned.

Absolutely none of that helped as Red X was thoroughly pummeling Gear. Turns out, lifting weights after school and apparently training in multiple forms of martial arts are two very different things.

"Ouch." Gear mumbled as he collapsed to his knees. He rubbed his stomach, sore from all the punches, kicks and knee smashes Red X hit it with.

"Sorry kid." Red X faux-apologized. "But you and your friends are way out of your league. None of you have the skill - "

"HIIIIYAAAAAA!" She-Bang screeched as she leapt at Red X. He teleported, making her crash into yet another crate. He reappeared in the exact same spot.

"To take me on." he finished.

"DAMN IT!" She-Bang loudly cursed.

"So I'll just take my xenothium and be on my way. Adios, kids." Red X said as he turned and leapt up to the skylight, crate by crate.

The thief heard a bang behind him, and before he knew it, he was wrapped in metal coils that bound his arms to his torso. With a surprised yelp, he fell to the ground in a heap. "What the?!" he demanded. His hands strained for his belt, trying to activate his teleporter…

But then Gear casually walked over and relieved him of the belt. "Wouldn't you know, I had one last toy in my back pocket. I _always _forget to check that when my belt goes dry."

Gear could swear that Red X narrowed his eyes at the young superhero, even though that should be impossible with a mask.

…..

"So, xenothium, huh?" Gear asked as Edwin Alva lead him, She-Bang and Rubberband Man inside Alva Labs. "Pretty rare stuff. Unstable, too."

"Your point?" Alva asked.

"Just making sure you're not doing anything illegal." Gear assured Alva.

"Rest assured, I'm not." Alva said. "Quite the opposite in fact. The government has specially commissioned my company to experiment with xenothium. But that's neither here nor there. You've caught my thief, so now I'm going to fulfill my end of the bargain."

They came to a sealed metal door at the end of the corridor. Alva punched in a code and the door opened. Inside was a massive chemistry lab, filled with beakers and vials and tubes of every shape and size, all containing different chemical materials. "My son will tell you everything." Alva said as he walked back the way he came.

"His son?" She-Bang asked as the three heroes entered.

"Edwin Alva Jr. Former super villain, former statue, and current scientist working for Alva Industries' chemical research department." Gear quickly clarified. They approached a young man with a large nose and blonde hair that, despite dressed like a scientist, was in truth no older than Gear. "Junior. You've come a long way since the last time I saw you." the Dakota hero said as he shook the young man's hand.

"Yeah. Dad's actually taking me seriously now." Junior replied. "But I know you're not here for my life story. My father told me of your arrangement with him."

"What can you tell us about the New Bang?" Gear asked.

Junior began searching through the papers on the desk before him. "First off, it's appropriate that the media call it the New Bang. It's new in more ways than one." Junior apparently found the appropriate file in the organized chaos and began reading through it. "It's not the same formula as the original Big Bang."

"It's not?" She-Bang asked.

"It's a slight variation on the original mutagenic formula." Junior explained. "You see, the gas of the original Big Bang was imperfect. A prototype, if you will. But for the last several months we've been conducting additional research with the formula. Modifying it. Trying to improve it."

"What you _should _have done was pour every drop of the stuff you had left down the drain." Rubberband Man said. "It's caused nothin' but trouble."

"We're talking about a mutagenic chemical that fundamentally rewrites the genetic code." Junior argued. "It would be foolish to simply destroy something like that without first considering all the possibilities. With a little revisions and in the right hands, the formula can do great good for the world."

"Oh yeah? Name one good thing it's done." the rubbery hero challenged.

"Easy. It created all of you." Junior countered. "Was _that _such a bad thing?" The superheroes had no answer. "Thought so."

"Wait a sec, I thought you already improved the gas." She-Bang commented. "Like you figured out how to modify it to give you a specific power. That's how you became that omni-guy, right?"

"Ah yes, Omnifarious. I prefer not to dwell on that…phase of my life." Junior replied. "Unfortunately, it would seem that one of the side-effects of my petrification was mild amnesia. My memories of the three or four days leading up to it are hazy at best. It's difficult to recall specific details, including my modifications to the formula."

_As well as Static's secret identity. _ Gear thought to himself. Edwin Alva Jr. had discovered Virgil's double-life during his rampage as Omnifarious. They were lucky that that was among the details that Junior forgot in his petrification.

"Back to the subject at hand." Junior resumed. "My team and I have been working on ways to improve the original formula, which had more than its share of flaws. For example, not everyone who inhaled the gas became a true meta-human."

"I'm aware." Gear said. "Half of those exposed actually died from it. My friends and I were among the lucky ones."

"Exactly." Junior replied. "So one of the primary goals of our research was to drastically reduce the formula's fatality rate. We were more successful in that particular goal than I dared to dream. The fatality rate is practically 0%. The odds of becoming a Bang Baby upon exposure is practically 100%."

"Is that what the New Bang is?" Gear asked.

"Correct." Junior replied. "As a consequence of its higher success rate…it would seem that Static and his new friends over in Jump City will have to deal with even more Bang Babies than Dakota ever did."

"That might have been nice to know a few days ago." Gear sarcastically commented. "Unfortunately, the Titans already know that they've got a truckload of meta-humans to deal with. You're not really telling us anything we don't already know."

"Then here's something you don't." Alva said. He looked around at the other scientists. He looked suspicious. He gestured Gear to come a little closer. Gear leaned in. "The H.I.V.E. Five only stole a small sample of this formula variant." Junior whispered. "It shouldn't have been enough to create as many meta-humans as it did over in Jump City."

"Meaning?" Gear asked.

"Whoever stole it had the means to replicate the formula. All they needed was a single sample as a reference." Junior said. "Additionally, that vault was filled with other, more unstable variants of the formula. Those were left untouched. The H.I.V.E. knew exactly what they wanted, and exactly where it was."

"What are you saying?" Gear asked.

"We suspect an information leak." Junior said.

"An inside job?" Gear asked.

"Had to have been. I refuse to believe they stole the most stable and successful formula variant through blind luck. Someone in this company told them what to look for." Junior said. "Not only does this mastermind have information, but capital as well. Resources, their own private labs, everything one would need for duplicating and then distributing the formula."

"Don't suppose you have any theories on who our guy is?" Gear asked.

"None." Junior grimly replied. "The internal investigation is still on-going. No leads yet. But one thing has become clear to me. Our mastermind has plans. Big ones, I'm sure of it. The New Bang was just the beginning."

"The beginning of what?" She-Bang asked.

"I wish I knew." Junior answered.

….

The night was officially a bust. Gear, She-Bang and Rubberband Man all busted their humps to catch a nasty thief, and all they got for their troubles was info they already knew and a couple of cryptic warnings. Definitely not the most productive evening they've ever had. They took solace in the fact that a dangerous criminal had been taken into police custody. Shenice and Adam opted to go home, while Gear stayed behind to close up the HQ, as well as to go over the notes that Edwin Alva Jr. handed him on his way out. He sat his desk going over the notes, still in costume as Gear, finding that even the research notes Junior provided weren't terribly helpful. The notes mostly just told Gear things that he already knew, and thus wouldn't help much.

Gear groaned in frustration and set aside the notes. He went back to tinkering with the shock vox, deciding that another vain attempt to contact Virgil was a better investment of his time. "Come on, Static, pick up." Gear grumbled. "Come on, I want to tell you the useless information that Alva told me that I already knew because the entire Alva bloodline is evidently composed of - "

"Jerks?" a voice asked. "Yeah, I hear ya kid." Richie swiveled in his chair.

And saw Red X casually leaning against the opposite wall.

Richie jumped out of his seat and grabbed a zap cap off the desk. "Woah there." the skeletal thief said as he held up his hands just as Gear was about to throw it. "I come in peace this time."

"How did you escape police custody?!" Gear demanded.

"Please. Takes a lot more than a pair of cuffs to hold me." Red X boasted. "You know, if it's info on the New Bang you want, I could probably help you out."

"Somehow I doubt that." Gear suspiciously replied as he relaxed. He still held the zap cap in his hand though, just in case.

"I know who's behind it." Red X said. "A guy named Slade."

"Slade?" Gear asked.

"Used to be a mercenary back in the day, but now he's a big-time crime lord in Jump City." Red X explained. "He operates mostly on the west coast, but lately he's been sending feelers to Dakota. He's been planning this whole thing for a while now. And if I know Slade, he's just getting warmed up."

"And you're telling me all this…..why?" Gear asked.

"Don't let the styling suit and the badass skills fool you. I'm no meta-human." Red X said. "Slade is looking to corner the meta-criminal market, which means there's gonna be a lot more superpowered thieves running around. I help you, I eliminate the competition."

"Nice to see your heart's in the right place." Gear sarcastically commented. "Anything else you'd like to share with the class?"

"Yeah. Slade might have gotten what he wanted out of Alva Industries, but don't think he's done with Dakota just yet." Red X said. "He's probably still got feelers in this city. If you want more answers, you might want to try looking for them."

"Me? Why don't _you _look for them?" Gear asked.

"Not my job, kid." Red X said. "But I _can _point you in the right direction. Look around the city outskirts. Look for someone named 'Provision.' Well. Catch ya later." And with that, Red X teleported. Gear immediately checked Back Pack, but there was nothing on the robot's motion radar. The thief was gone.

Gear slumped into his seat again. "And here I was, thinking that with Virgil away from home, I'd be missing out on all the fun."


	8. Judgement Day

**Sorry this chapter was so late, but….yeah. Look at it. I think this is easily the longest chapter of Titan Shock yet (and it doesn't help that the Doc Manager isn't working for some reason. Had to use a separate computer to upload this). So hopefully it will have been worth the wait.**

…

Day three as an honorary Titan and for Static it was…kind of strange. He hadn't even known these people for a week yet, but they were already like old friends to him. Family, even. Not since he first met Richie way back in the eighth grade had he ever warmed up to new people this fast. Static played video games with Beast Boy, helped out Cyborg with his car, he even went shopping with Starfire once. Her iPod had a lot more Bruno Mars in it now, thanks to Static's musical recommendations. He wasn't really sure how or why he bonded with the other Titans so fast. Maybe it was because they were teenage superheroes like him, which made him feel a little less alone in the world. Maybe it was because they were just a fun group to hang with. Either way, as crazy as it sounded, Static genuinely felt like he was one of them now.

"Ah! Dude! Quit zapping me!"

"I will once you stop breathing in my face! _Breath mints, _man, look into 'em!"

"It's cuz of all that tofu he eats!"

"Silence, carnivore!"

"Would you guys just step off?! I just want my damn yogurt!"

"Your yogurt can wait! Right now, there's a leftover six-inch phillly cheese steak sub with my name on it!"

"Then just grab it!"

"I will once _you _step - HEY! BB! NO TENTACLES!"

"Aw, that just ain't right!"

Suddenly, the three superheroes found themselves wrapped in a black aura. They were floated away from the refrigerator that they were fighting each other to get into just a second earlier. Raven stood just outside the kitchen area, her eyes glowing white, her hand 'glowing' black, and Starfire standing next to her. "The three stooges, ladies and gentlemen." Raven absently commented, eliciting a small giggle from the Tamaranian. Raven dropped Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Static on top of one another before she went into the kitchen herself to brew her morning tea.

As the three heroes got up and dusted themselves off, Starfire walked over to them. "Have any of you seen Robin this morning?" she asked.

"Nope." Static replied.

"Nuh-uh." Beast Boy replied.

"Nada." Cyborg said. "Which is kinda weird, now that I think about it. Guy's usually up by now."

"Probably playing 'obsessive detective' again." Beast Boy commented. "You know how he gets whenever Slade is involved."

Starfire looked downcast for a moment. "He was not interested in watching the comedy of romance with me last night. He simply went straight to his room once we came back from defeating Torque and Featherweight yesterday."

"I could go check on him, if you want." Static volunteered.

"I do not know." Starfire replied. "I do not think Robin wishes to be disturbed."

"Hey, I'm the new guy remember?" Static said. "So if anyone is gonna get chewed out for disturbing him, it probably oughta be me."

Starfire smiled. "You would have my thanks." she told him.

"Alrighty then. Be right back." Static said as he left the ops room and made his way to Robin's room.

Making his way through the inner workings of the Tower and admittedly getting slightly lost for a few minutes (cut him a break, he was still getting used to this place), he finally found Robin's room. He knocked on the door. "Yo Robin! You in there?" he hollered.

"Come in." came Robin's uninterested reply. Static pressed the button by the door and the door slid open. He still couldn't get over how the doors in this place were like something out of Star Trek.

Static let out a low whistle as he looked around the boy wonder's room. It suddenly felt like he was in crazy town. Newspaper clippings of various unsolved crimes pinned to the walls, with long strings of yarn connecting them. In the corner was a punching bag that was lumpy and had a few patches on it from blatant over-use. There was an exercise bar at the far end of the room. The bed didn't look all that comfy - just enough to qualify as something to sleep on. All of that was neglected as Robin himself was hunched over his computer like a troll, the printer next to it printing out a dozen different things.

"What do you want?" Robin absently asked. He was so focused on whatever was on the screen that the question was the only hint that he even knew Static was in the room.

"Starfire asked me to check on you. She says you've been holed up in here all night." Static said.

"She worries about me too much." Robin said dismissively. The printer was done printing, and he took the papers and pinned them to the cork-board in what few empty spots there were. He then stared at them. Hard.

"Sooo….whatcha lookin' at?" Static asked as he cautiously walked up to the boy wonder's side.

"Reports of more meta-human crimes." Robin said. "While we were dealing with Torque and Featherweight, a convenience store was being held up by five Bang Babies at once. Store owner says they emptied his register and took off. JCPD couldn't find them after that."

Robin pointed to another of the freshly printed papers. "And here. This Bang Baby tried to mug a pair of girls last night. Warped in, grabbed their purses, and warped out. And this one. Stole a car last night at the same time as the mugging."

"Don't beat yourself up over all this." Static said. "Wecan't be everywhere at once." That was a harsh lesson that Static himself had to learn early on in his super-heroic career. Accepting that you couldn't stop every single crime in the city, or help out with every single emergency. Superhero or not, there was only so much one could do.

"It's not about that." Robin replied. "I'm trying to find the pattern."

"Pattern?" Static asked.

"All these crimes are connected. I know they are." Robin said.

"I dunno about that." Static said. "Just seems like a bunch of bad guys getting super-powers, and deciding to use 'em to take whatever they want. Not much different from Dakota."

Robin shook his head. "Don't forget who's pulling the strings here. _Slade_." He turned and looked at Static in the eye for the first time that morning. "I _know _Slade. He wouldn't create an army of super-powered criminals just to have them commit petty crimes across the city. Not unless it served a purpose."

"Maybe he's getting a cut of the profits?" Static suggested.

Robin shook his head again. "Slade never does _anything _small. If he wanted money, he'd have the Bang Babies hitting bigger targets than convenience stores and little old ladies. No, the only reason the meta-criminals are playing small-ball is because Slade is _allowing _them to. Question is, why? What does he have to gain from a string of petty crimes?"

Robin's attention shifted from the photos back to his computer as he opened another window. "Then there's Slade's new apprentice - Nightstrike. We know absolutely nothing about him." Robin went on. "We don't know how long he's been working for Slade, his name doesn't come up _anywhere _in the super criminal database, it's like he just came out of nowhere. From fighting him I could tell that he's not exactly a martial artist. More like a kick boxer with some elements of street fighting. That, combined with the apparent experience with light firearms, implies a street criminal background."

"Well, mystery solved then. Sounds to me like he's a gang banger that Slade took under his wing." Static commented with a shrug.

"I _know _Slade." Robin repeated. "He wouldn't make just _anyone _his apprentice. Trust me on that one. Nightstrike couldn't have been just another gang banger. He had to have done _something _that impressed Slade enough to make him his apprentice."

"Look man." Static said. "The others are having breakfast, and they're getting kinda worried about you. You can stare at photos and computer screens all you like _after _you pop in real quick to let 'em know you're not dead."

Robin cast another quick glance at the recently-printed crime reports, then back to his computer screen, then finally at Static. He then sighed in defeat. "Fine." he said. On that note, Static led the boy wonder out of his room. After a few minutes of walking, Robin spoke up again. "Thanks."

"For what?" Static asked.

"For pulling me out of there." Robin said. "See…..Slade and I have a history."

"Personal, huh?" Static asked.

"Something like that." Robin replied. "Anyway, long story short, I got a little too obsessed with taking down Slade in the past. So obsessed that I made mistakes. Bad ones." Robin looked Static in the eye again and smiled genuinely. "Thanks for keeping me from falling into that trap again."

"Don't sweat it." Static said.

…

"Come on, man." Static whined. "Didn't we already do this yesterday?"

"But we weren't able to complete all the tests before the alarm went off." Cyborg replied as the two heroes made their way down to the Tower's garage.

"And as soon as we start, that alarm's gonna go off again. You realize that, don't you?" Static suggested.

"Well shoot, don't _say it_." Cyborg harshly said as they came closer to where the T-Car was parked. "You'll jinx us."

The previous day, Cyborg had been testing out a theory that using Static himself as a battery would improve the T-Car's RPM, whatever that meant, Static wasn't sure. Which meant that Static spent much of the previous day just holding a pair of wires in his hands and occasionally feeding the T-Car some juice, which gets kinda boring after a while. Static wasn't really looking forward to doing it again, but Cyborg had all but dragged him into it so he couldn't really refuse.

"Hey, thanks for dragging Robin out of his bird cave this morning." Cyborg said. "We were getting worried."

"He takes the superhero gig _real _serious, doesn't he?" Static asked.

"You have no idea." Cyborg said. "I'm pretty sure his bo-staff doubles as the stick up his butt when he's not in a fight." Static chortled at the joke.

Eventually, they came up on where the T-Car was parked, its own specially reserved area within the cavernous garage. In front of the car was the driveway leading out of the tower, and surrounding its sides and its rear were tables littered with several different kinds of tools and parts. Cyborg loved cars the way Static loved rap music, and was constantly experimenting with different ways to make the T-Car even more awesome. "Heeeey, baaaaby." Cyborg cooed as they approached the T-Car. "Daddy's back with Uncle Static to try out a few new-"

It was too late by the time Cyborg noticed the taught string he just stepped on. The string triggered a small catapult off to the side, which launched a bowling high through the air and landing in a bucket on a string. The bucket quickly descended from the sudden shift in wait, the string it was hanging on opening a box near the ceiling via a pulley. Another bowling ball emerged from the box, rolling down the iron lane which was also near the ceiling, dropping onto another lane that leaned downwards in the opposite direction, followed by another and another, until it came to stop when it hit a panel. The panel was apparently had a remote pressure switch in it, as it opened a cage on the other side of the garage, releasing a possum which scurried down the lane and swiped an apple at the end and began munching on it. The apple must've been sitting on a pressure trap, as the apple's removal triggered a panel flipping open and letting a baseball roll down the lane beneath the possum, knocking over a series of pegs, each one connected to a suspended bucket full of paint. One by one, the pegs were knocked loose and the buckets of paint emptied their contents….

All over the T-Car.

Cyborg was strangely still and silent for several seconds afterwards, his car dripping with a mix of yellow and blue and purple. Then, Static saw them. Twitches. First, his left index finger. Followed by his left cheek. As the Dakota teen slowly sidestepped away from him, he could make out his human eye twitching as well. He slowly transformed from a shocked statue and into a trembling volcano. Finally, he erupted.

_**BEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAST BOOOOOOOOOOYYYYYYYYY!**_

After roaring the green hero's name to the heavens, Cyborg took off out of the garage and started his man-hunt. Static's breathing became desperate, only just now realizing that he hadn't dared breathe for nearly thirty seconds. He said a silent prayer for the little grass stain, wherever he was at the moment. His suffering would be legendary, he was sure.

Guessing that Cyborg no longer required his services (and quite frankly, he kinda wanted to keep his head down and wait out the storm that would be Cyborg's revenge), Static left the garage and started heading back to his room. Between training, crime-fighting and just hanging out with the Titans in general, he hadn't had much 'me-time' all week. Static figured that now would be a good time to kick back, relax, and zone out to A Positive Light.

As he made his way to his room, Starfire walked around the corner. She was holding a large kitchen bowl and stirring something with a large wooden spoon. Her face lit up upon seeing Static and she floated over to him. "Friend-Static!" she greeted. "Your timing is most fortuitous!"

"It is?" Static asked.

"I shall be cooking dinner tonight!" the Tamaranean excitedly declared. "I intend to bake a delicious yokk-borlok!" She showed the contents of the bowl to Static, which had purple…..batter. Static was _guessing _that it was batter at least.

"Yokka-what now?" Static asked.

"It is a delicacy on my planet." Starfire quickly explained as she stirred it a few more times. She then presented Static with a spoonful. "Try some!"

Not seeing any reason not to, Static shrugged and tried a bite….

And immediately regretted it as the taste of used sweat socks violated his tongue and sent cold shivers down his spine. He immediately spat it out and started zapping his own tongue, desperately trying to get the taste out of his mouth. "Hm. Perhaps I used too much milk." Starfire commented to herself. "Fret not! I shall have the recipe perfected by the time of dinner!" With that, she flew back around the corner from which she came.

As soon as Starfire was out of sight, Static made a beeline for the bathroom, feeling a need to brush his teeth, hoping that spear mint would replace the horrid taste in his mouth. _Never thought I'd see the day when Sharon's cooking would look good. _he wryly thought to himself as he brushed his teeth harder and with more enthusiasm than he ever had in his whole life.

His vigorous tooth brushing stopped as something clicked in his mind. Sharon. Home. Pops. Dakota. Dakota Union High. Gear, She-Bang, Rubber Band Man. Richie.

That was the moment that Static realized that he hadn't talked to Richie in almost a whole week.

He wrapped up his brushing and spat the toothpaste into the sink drain as a sense of dread washed over him. Richie was probably _not _going to be happy about being ignored for the last week or so, so Virgil was expecting a thorough chewing out. His only excuse was that the Titans had been keeping him busy, what with the New Bang and everything.

He made his way to his room, shut the door behind him, and started digging around in his drawer, searching for the shock vox. He remembered putting it in the drawers before putting his jacket in the wash one time, and he hadn't touched it since then. He took it and spoke into it. "Richie? You there?" he cautiously asked. Silence was his only reply. "Richie?" he tried again. Again, nothing.

Static examined the shock vox more closely. He found it strange that it didn't seem to working. It _always _worked. Never even needed recharging. Probably because it was in his coat pocket all the time so it got a good charge whenever he used his powers….ah. And it was in the drawer for the last three days. Figuring that it just needed a good charge, Static zapped it. After feeding it energy for a solid thirty seconds, he tried again. "Richie? Richie, you there?"

"Virgil? Is that you?" an incredulous Richie replied. "Dude! You haven't called in a week! What the hell?!"

Virgil winced. Yeah, he had a feeling that would be Richie's reaction. "I know, I know, I'm sorry! It's just…..I've been kinda busy."

"Busy how?!" Richie demanded.

"You know. Helping the Titans fight Bang Babies, trackin' down the big bad, combat training, stuff like that." Virgil replied. "I tell ya, Rich. Never a dull moment with these guys."

"So, what? You just drop off the face of the earth?!" Richie continued to rant. "No shock vox, no cell phone, no e-mail, not even a single tweet?!"

"Okay, okay, I get it!" Virgil shouted in reply. "You're right, I should've called sooner, _I get it_. _I'm sorry._"

"Well…now that we've got _that _out of the way…..why call now?" Richie asked. It sounded like he calmed down a little, but was still resentful.

"Er….I just realized that I hadn't called you in a week." Static honestly replied. "So…yeah. How are things going back home?" he asked, changing topic before that answer got too awkward.

"Well, let's see. Your dad has been _worried sick_, for one." Richie said. "I _still _can't believe you just up and ran away like that, by the way."

"Hey, I was mad, alright?" Virgil countered. "Pops was-"

"Telling you about how dangerous the superhero lifestyle is and how it might not be the right path for you, which kinda made you mad, I know, he told me what happened, and for what it's worth, he's _very _sorry. So if you wanted to humble him a little, congratulations, mission accomplished." Richie replied. "On a related note, when are you coming back exactly?"

"Not until the job gets done." Virgil resolutely stated.

"What job?" Richie said. "You mean rounding up every single Bang Baby in Jump City? Good luck getting all of _that_ done by Monday."

"I'll stay however long it takes." Virgil defiantly said.

"Er…..dude. You have school on Monday." Richie pointed out.

"…..Say what?" Virgil asked.

"Dude, you _forgot _that you had _school _on Monday?" Richie asked incredulously.

"I've…..been busy?" Virgil suggested, hoping his go-to excuse would work actually work this time.

"Apparently." Richie replied. "Look, if you want my advice, I'd start packing your bags tonight. If you leave Jump City tomorrow, you'd be back in Dakota by Sunday, just in time for the first day back from school."

"But what about the Jump City Bang Babies?" Virgil asked. "The Titans have a real mess on their hands over here, Rich. They don't just have Bang Babies to worry about either. Turns out, the New Bang was orchestrated by a dude named Slade."

"Slade, huh?" Richie asked. "Go on."

"Old enemy of the Titans. Real nasty too, from what I've heard. Baddest of the bad." Virgil explained. "Point is, I don't wanna leave the Titans hangin', you know?"

"Relax, V-Man." Richie said. "The Titans have dealt with worse than this on their own. You've already helped them out enough, they can take things from here. Besides, you and I can help them from Dakota."

"What do you mean?" Virgil asked.

"Let's just say today wasn't the first time I heard Slade's name." Richie cryptically replied. "I kinda got a…'tip'….that Slade is the one behind all this and that he's still got agents here in Dakota."

"In Dakota? Why?" Virgil asked. "Slade already got the Bang Baby gas and put it to good use. What more does he want?"

"The million-dollar question. You can help me answer it once you get back here. Whaddaya say?" Richie asked.

Static paused for a few seconds in thought. He supposed he didn't really have a choice. Spring Break was half-way over, and with a two-day trip ahead of him, he _had _to leave Jump City the very next day if he wanted to be back in Dakota by Monday. Still…a part of him really didn't want to leave. He had honestly made friends with the Titans, and he didn't want to leave his new friends behind so soon.

Static sighed, choosing to give in to the inevitable. "Okay. I'll be coming home. See you soon, Rich." And with that, he turned off the vox.

…..

_Christ, I'm bored_. Archie Jones thought to himself as he stood in the same darn spot as always. He had thought that being a security guard at Jump City First National Bank would be a pretty cool gig. Good pay, decent hours, and all you had to do was just stand there and look scary. But after a few weeks in this job, the boredom of standing in the same spot for hours at a time was getting to the young man. He scanned the cavernous lobby for the eighth time, people-watching being his only source of entertainment here.

His eye eventually caught a young man around his age, sitting in one of the waiting chairs. He'd just been sitting there, seemingly staring into space, for the last thirty minutes now. He was a caucasian-american with dirt-blonde hair and was wearing a black t-shirt with blue jeans, as well as dark sunglasses.

Suspicious, Archie approached the young man. "Something I can help you with, sir?"

"No." the young man replied without even turning his head. "Just waiting on some friends. I'm meeting them here to sort out some personal business."

"What kind of business?" Archie asked.

The young man shrugged. "I just changed banks, and apparently I need proof of disability before they can cash my disability checks. I need a friend present to witness." It was then that Archie noticed the cane the guy was holding. He instantly felt a little bit guilty for suspecting him of something. "I tell ya, these big banks _really _make you jump through hoops."

"Yeah." Archie replied. "Well, let me know if you need anything." he added as he walked back to his post.

….

"That was _way _too close." a voice said into Farsight's earpiece as the guard walked away. "Good save with that disability excuse."

"Blindness has its advantages." Farsight said.

"How does it look in there, brother?" a second voice, this one female, asked.

"Kinda crowded." Farsight said. "Lots of hostage opportunities in here. Light on security personnel, though. Really, the only obstacles will be the vaults themselves."

"Yeeeaaaah, they're not the _only _obstacles you'll have to worry about, you know." the first voice pointed out. "The other obstacles will probably swing by about…..I dunno…..five, ten minutes after the alarms go off? You guys will have to work fast in there."

"Noted, Pixel." the female voice said. "So…the time to strike is now then?"

"Whenever you're ready." Farsight said.

A few minutes later, four young people entered the bank. Three women and one man. The woman in front was African-American, and wore a leather jacket over her red tank top. She also wore blue jeans and fingerless gloves. On her right was a pair of two other women, one caucasian woman with long red hair and the other with light tan skin with long brown curly hair, but had very similar faces despite the seemingly different ethnicities. Finally, the young man on her left was hispanic, close-cropped black hair and a matching goatee and wearing a brown trench coat.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" the black woman in the leather jacket announced aloud. Everyone turned towards her. "…..This is a hold-up."

She fired pink energy blasts from her hands into the air, sending the whole bank into a panic. The patrons were about to make a run for it, but stopped dead in their tracks as the woman leveled her hands at them. "Touch, Go, deal with the guards."

The two women high-fived and, shortly afterwards, the redhead started running around the bank at super-speed, rounding up all the security guards and dumping them by the bank entrance. The tan brunette then used her super-strength to hurl the guards out the door, clean across the street, sending them crashing through a café window, causing a panic there as well.

The lead woman and the hispanic man closed in on the civilians, the latter sprouting long chains from his wrists and swinging them around threateningly. "Y'all know the drill." the woman said. "Stay on your knees, no sudden moves or sounds, and no one gets hurt. We'll just make our withdrawal and be on our way. Long as nobody loses their head, nobody has to….._lose their head._"

…

Virgil knocked on Robin's door and waited for the boy wonder to open it, sighing as he did so. He _really _wished he didn't have to do this. He didn't want to bail on the Titans, and certainly not in the middle of a meta-human crime wave. But Richie was right. He needed to start heading home soon, and he had to let Robin know.

The door opened, revealing Robin standing in the door way. "Static? You need something?" he asked.

"Robin…..I thought I should let you know that - "

It was then that the alarms went off and red lights started flashing through the Tower.

"We'll resume this discussion later." Robin said before running past Static to the ops room. Static followed suit, taking out his saucer and hopping on.

The two arrived in the ops room, finding Cyborg was the first to arrive and was at the crime computer. "What have we got?" Robin asked as Beast Boy, Starfire and Raven arrived in the ops room.

"A bunch of Bang Babies holding up First National." Cyborg said.

"Looks like Slade finally decided to step up his game." Robin commented. "Everyone to the garage! Titans, move out!"

….

Touch ripped the vault door off its hinges, revealing the vault's contents - money. Shelves upon shelves of it. Go zipped in and started cleaning house, grabbing the cash, stuffing it into her bag, getting a new bag whenever she filled one up, all at super-speed.

While Touch and Go were cleaning out the vault upstairs, Shackle was punching the safety deposit boxes behind the counters, busting them open with chain-wrapped fists. He reached inside and stuffed his pockets to the brim with cash, jewels, and anything else that looked even remotely valuable. Jessica, the leader of this band of robbers, kept watch over the hostages, who had been herded into a corner of the lobby. She smiled with self-satisfaction as they cowered before her. She loved it when people feared her. It meant that they recognized her power.

Farsight, who hadn't moved from the chair he was sitting in since the heist began, started thumping his cane against the floor. "Company's on their way!" he announced aloud. Sure enough, Jessica heard that which put a chill through the gut of any Jump City lawbreaker - the T-Car's siren in the distance, slowly getting louder.

"Finally…." Jessica muttered with a smile as she turned to the front entrance, her hands and eyes glowing with power.

"Er, guys? The T-Car is en route and hauling ass. Time to wrap it up in there." Pixel's voice said over the com.

"No." Jessica said.

"…..Beg pardon?" Pixel asked.

"We face the Titans head-on. We face them and we _end them_." Jessica went on.

"Amen to that, sister!" Shackle called out as he stuffed some cheap engagement ring into his pocket. "I didn't become a Bang Baby just to run and hide! Let's kick some Titan ass!"

"No, _noooo_, no. That was NOT part of the plan." Pixel argued. "We go in, we grab as much as we can before the Titans inevitably show up, then we bail. THAT was the plan. I LIKED that plan. I liked that plan because it didn't involve getting punched, blasted, and/or chased around by a green bear."

"Go." Jessica said into her earpiece. "Retrieve Pixel."

"Wait what?" Pixel asked. A red-haired blur ran past the meta-criminal, and came back holding a pale, brown-haired young man by the collar a second later. He wore a white shirt with a pocket protector and khaki shorts, as well as a red bandana around the lower part of his face, and a pair of thick goggles around his eyes. "What are you doing?!" Pixel demanded as Go released him.

"I do not long suffer cowards." Jessica said. "You have powers. I expect you to use them."

"Yeeeaaahhhh, see I'm not really much of a fighter." Pixel said. "I'm more of a…..planner, you know? A mastermind?"

"You were not given a sword just so you can let it gather dust, Pixel." Jessica said.

"They're here." Farsight said aloud before Pixel could come up with another excuse. He stood up and walked over to join the others.

…..

The T-Car screeched to a stop outside Jump City First National, Robin's motorcycle close behind. The Titans piled out of the vehicles and made their way up the steps to the bank's entrance. Robin, leading as always, kicked the door in…..

And ducked just in time to dodge the incoming energy blast. It whizzed through the air and hit an empty car on the far side of the street, making it explode. Robin turned towards the source and saw a woman with an outstretched palm, smoke wafting from it. He recognized her as the woman who rallied together the Jump City gangs on the night of the New Bang.

"Lo and behold, the false kings come down from their throne." the woman said as five other other meta-humans took their places on either side of her. Well, four others. One of them was kinda hiding behind her more than anything else.

"Good to see you again, Stevens." Robin said.

"You know her?" Static asked.

"She was the one who rallied the gangs and handed out the gas the night of the New Bang." Robin elaborated. "I ran a background check on her after the event. Jessica Stevens. Former gang leader. Wanted on multiple charges of armed robbery, drug trafficking, and illegal gambling. She's also been suspected of several homicides."

"You've read about me. I'm flattered." Jessica replied with a smirk.

"I see you have a new gang." Robin said.

"Indeed. The chosen who have heeded my call." Jessica said. "Allow me to introduce them. Shackle."

The hispanic man in the trench coat twirled some chains around, which seemed to come out of his wrists.

"Farsight."

The young man with the black sunglasses twirled a cane around in his hand with a confidant smirk.

"Touch and Go."

The two other women high-fived, the redhead zipped to the brunette's other side with lightning speed, while the brunette cracked her knuckles threateningly.

"And Pixel." Jessica said as she stepped aside, revealing a psuedo-masked man who had been cowering behind her previously.

"Ooooooooooooh crap." Pixel muttered as he was suddenly in the spotlight.

"As for me….." Jessica said as her eyes started to glow pink. "Call me Judgement."

"Judgement?" Static asked. "Really? _That's _your super villain name? Come on, girl. You can be more creative than that. How about Light Ray or Vector?"

"Or Nimbus or Kai?" Beast Boy suggested. The other five Titans all looked at him. "What? She shoots lasers out of her hands. Am I the only one getting a _Dragon Ball Z_ kinda vibe from that?"

"More specifically…I am _your _Judgement, Titans." Judgement said. "You have been judged and found guilty! Guilty of oppression! Guilty of idolatry! You all dwell within your _tower of supreme decadence and vanity, _looking down upon the meek! Arrogantly appointing yourselves the arbiters of Jump! No more! Today, we take back our city! We will scatter you as unclean things and say to you 'Be gone!'"

"….Does anyone know what she is talking about?" Starfire asked.

"Yeah, not gonna lie, that kinda went over my head too." Cyborg commented.

"I heard her call us 'unclean,' but that's about it." Beast Boy pointed out.

"She must've just been talking about you then." Raven quipped.

"Oh wow. A 'Beast Boy stinks' joke." Beast Boy quipped back. "Real original."

"Well, it's true, ain't it?" Static pointed out. "Seriously dude. How do you live in that swamp of stank you call a room?"

"Enough!" Judgement shouted as her hands and eyes glowed ominously, her minions also getting ready to fight.

"Titans, go!" Robin shouted. The six heroes scattered to dodge the incoming energy blasts. "Starfire, get the hostages out of here!" Robin ordered as he and the other Titans charged towards the Bang Babies.

Starfire flew over to the hostages and blasted a hole in the wall nearby with her eye beams. "Please leave now!" she instructed. "This fight will get most dangerous!" Needing no further instruction, the hostages poured out of the building through the hole, allowing the Titans to fight the meta-criminals without having to worry about innocents getting hurt.

As Starfire herded the hostages out, the remaining Titans engaged the meta-humans. Judgement barraged the Titans with her laser palm blasts, giving her minions the cover they needed to charge in. Shackle came at Robin, chains twirling. He swung his chain around, which wrapped itself around his bo-staff, which he then yanked away. Robin scowled at being disarmed before taking a battle stance, ready to fight with his fists and feet. Shackle was ready for the challenge, wrapping his chains around his fists, creating makeshift brass knuckles and ready to fight.

Touch and Go ganged up on Cyborg, the former easily having enough strength to rival his, and the latter zipped around the automaton, sneaking in the occasional super-speed powered cheap hit. Suddenly, a bolt of electric power nearly missed Go's head, making the redhead jerk her head up at the source - Static. "Yo, Little Mermaid!" he taunted. "How's about you come over here and be a part of my word?" he asked as he wiggled his eyebrows and flew backwards towards the front entrance. Go growled before giving chase.

Static zapped the metal grating in front of the bank entrance, magnetizing it. Which meant that by the time Go reached the great, she was stopped dead in her tracks, her feet suddenly stuck to the grating. "I call that one my Static Cling. It's a classic move of mine." Static said with his trademark cocky grin.

Static saw that the battle was going well so far. Without her speedster homegirl helping her, Cyborg was able to stand on more even ground with Touch. Beast Boy wasn't having as much luck with Judgement, whose laser blasts were keeping him back. BB and Cy were back to back briefly. They looked at each other and nodded, then switched villains. Cyborg began giving Judgement a taste of her own medicine with his sonic cannon while Beast Boy morphed into a gorilla and began swinging his meaty fists at Touch.

Content that his two friends were doing okay, Static turned and saw the Bang Baby with the sunglasses and the cane casually walking over - Farsight. "On the one hand, I really shouldn't fight a blind dude." Static commented. "But on the other hand, you _are _robbing a bank. So don't think I'll go easy on you just cuz you can't see."

Farsight chuckled wickedly. "Oh, don't worry. I see a lot more than you think." He waved his hands and large blades that glowed purple suddenly materialized out of the air around him.

"Uh-oh." Static said just before Farsight tilted his fingers forward and sent the levitating blades after him. Static flew up into the upper reaches of the lobby and into the second story hallways, but the blades stubbornly pursued him.

While all of this was going on, Pixel was on his hands and knees, slowly crawling from desk to desk, trying to find a way out of this mess. "I did not sign up for this, I did not sign up for this, I did _not _sign up for this…." he muttered under his breath as panic began to set in.

It was then that a black hole opened up in the floor in front of him, and out from the hole came the Teen Titans' most infamous member - Raven. She looked down on him, her violet eyes cast in a scornful stare.

"Okay, now listen." Pixel nervously began. "I believe that if we were to come to blows, I would…..come up short. So…would you be willing to let me go, by any chance?"

"No." Raven deadpanned.

"Eh, figured it was worth a shot." Pixel shrugged. He suddenly thrust out his hands, a spray of white, mist-like energy washing over Raven. After a few seconds of this, Raven dropped to the ground, her body encased in ice from the neck down. "Yeah, I main Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat X." Pixel said as he stood up and dusted himself off. "Good thing I played a few rounds this morning….."

He then spotted salvation - the hole in the wall that Starfire blasted earlier. Eager to get out of this fuster-cluck, he made a break for it…

Only to find an angry Tamaranean appearing in the door way moments before he reached it. "Oooooooh crap." he muttered as Starfire's eyes and hands began glowing an angry jade. It was then that Cyborg flew through the air between them and crashed into a nearby table.

"Ugh….." Cyborg groaned as he got up. He turned to Starfire. "You mind switching?"

"Oh, of course! Good luck with this ice person." Starfire said before she zoomed off to fight Judgement. Cyborg turned towards Pixel and cracked his metallic knuckles as he grinned evilly at the villain.

"This…isn't really a huge improvement over the redhead." Pixel commented. "Could I fight Robin instead?" Cyborg answered Pixel's question by lunging at him. Wanting to get out of the angry robot's way, the Bang Baby leapt backwards into the air, pulling off a couple of backflips in mid-air, before landing on his feet some distance away. He took a fighting stance, slightly hunched over, his left hand low and open, his right hand cocked back and clenched into a fist. "Okay…..bring it on." Pixel said, a little unsure of the whole situation.

Cyborg charged forward to hit Pixel with a haymaker, but Pixel stopped his charge with a judo kick to his chest, knocking him back. Pixel then formed a sword made of ice in his hands and then shattered it into a thousand pieces over Cyborg's head. "Watch out, ice man." Cyborg said as he rubbed his head. "I'm about to turn up the heat!"

With that, he whipped out his sonic cannon and aimed it squarely at Pixel. Pixel then leapt back, leaving an ice statue of himself in his place, which absorbed Cyborg's sonic blast. "The heck?" Cyborg demanded as he saw Pixel running away from Cyborg. "Yo! Get back here!" he hollered as he ran after the fleeing villain. Pixel ran up the stairs to the bank's second floor with Cyborg in hot pursuit.

Speaking of the second floor, Static was still getting chased by those flying swords. No matter where he went, they always knew where he was, and no matter what he threw at them, they simply flew around it. It was like they had minds of their own. He flew back out in the lobby and spotted Farsight standing in the middle of it, not even looking up at the Dakota hero. Deducing that he was controlling the blades somehow, he fired a static bolt at him. However, he effortlessly leapt out of the air, tucked and rolled, and ran through the bank, leaping and bounding over the various pieces of furniture as he ran away from Static.

_How does he know where everything is? Isn't he supposed to be blind?_ Static thought to himself. Static kept chasing and pouring the heat on Farsight, knowing that it was the only way to get these flying knives off his own back. He electrified a chair and threw it at Farsight. The Bang Baby somehow ducked without even looking behind him. He tried throwing a few more things at him, but Farsight kept dodging every single projectile, all without turning around. Far from blind, it was like the guy had eyes in the back of his head.

Farsight suddenly stopped and held out a hand, conjuring a glowing wall this time. Thinking quickly, Static pulled up just before impacting against it, allowing the swords to impale themselves against it. Finally free of the pursuing blades, Static crested the wall and dived towards Farsight….

Who then conjured another series of large blades pointed at Static. "Oh come on!" Static shouted. He threw up an electro-magnetic shield around himself just in time to block the incoming blades. He flew away, pursued by yet more blades again. This time, he tried zapping them away directly, but it was met with only partial success. For some reason, the blades couldn't be magnetized very well. It was then that a big, glowing hammer flew out of nowhere and smacked Static right in the chest, knocking him off his saucer and rolling across the floor until he hit something hard. He looked up and saw that the object he crashed into was…..

The block of ice that Raven was still stuck in. She looked down on Static. "You're having a rough time too, I see." she observed.

Before Static could reply, Farsight casually strolled over to the two, twirling his cane in his hand, the glowing blades floating around him. "Any last words?" he asked the two superheroes.

"I've been watching you and Static chasing each other." Raven said. "Let me guess. Telepathic powers, right? Enhanced spatial awareness and able to create psychic objects, more specifically?"

"That obvious, huh?" Farsight asked.

"Only to another telepath like me." Raven said. "Also, another guess, you can pyschically detect physical objects around you just fine, but probably not _meta_-physical objects."

"What's that got to do with anything?" Farsight asked.

"This. Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Raven's eyes glowed white and she suddenly phased through the ice. Well…..a 'copy' of her did. An all-black copy. An all-black copy that flew out of the ice block and _inside _Farsight. Farsight gripped his head and screamed in pain as the glowing blades around him suddenly disappeared. After a few seconds of tormented howling, the Bang Baby crumpled to the ground like a puppet that just had its strings cut. The black Raven copy phased out of his body and back into her own.

"Woah." Static replied. "What did - "

"I attacked him with my soul-self." Raven answered Static's question before he could even ask it. "Since a soul is not a physical object, I figured it would be the one attack he couldn't see coming."

"Thanks for the save." Static said with a grateful smile.

"You're welcome. You can return the favor by _getting me out of this ice._" Raven replied.

"Oh. Right." Static dumbly said, earning an eye-roll from Raven. He zapped the walls, pulling out some of the copper wires within and wrapping them around Raven's ice block. He then electrified the wires, super-heating them, allowing them to melt through the ice.

"Thanks." Raven said once she was fully thawed.

They heard animalistic groaning and turned towards the noise's source. Touch was grappling with a green rhino by the horn, and so far Touch was winning. Robin was similarly locked in an even fight with Shackle, the boy wonder flipping and ducking and trying to dodge the swinging chains. "You take the world's strongest woman, I'll take chains for brains." Static said as he hopped on his saucer and flew to help Robin.

Dealing with Shackle was all too simple. As the Bang Baby shot his chains out at Robin, Static zapped them, and wrapped them around the confused meta-human good and tight. Robin used his bungie cord to tie up Shackle around his own chains, just for good measure. "Thanks for the assist." Robin said with a smile.

"Don't sweat it." Static replied as he zapped Robin's bo-staff across the room and threw it over to him. A red blur suddenly ran past them and between Raven and Beast Boy, right where Touch was standing.

"Come on!" Go said as she picked up Touch and threw her over her shoulder. "We gotta jet!" And with that, Go was gone with Touch in a flash.

"Damn it!" Static swore. "Static Cling wore off! Touch and Go are getting away!" It was then that Starfire crashed into a nearby desk. Judgement laughed as she hefted a sack full of money over her shoulder, blasted a hole in the wall, and took off.

"They're not the only ones." Raven commented.

"We can't let Judgement get away! Titans, Go!" Robin ordered. Raven and Static took to the air, along with Starfire once she dusted the splinters off her clothes. Beast Boy morphed into a horse and Robin jumped on, holding his bo-staff like it was a lance.

Judgement ran down the flight of stairs and into the street, taking a sharp left. As she ran further down the street, she looked over her shoulder and saw the five Titans pursuing her. She hissed out a curse as she turned on her heels, dropped the bag and started firing pink laser bolts. The Titans scattered, Robin hopping off of Beast Boy as the latter morphed into a hawk. With a deft hand, Robin threw a disc at Judgement's feet. Upon detonation, her feet were frozen to the ground in a chunk of ice. She leered at the heroes scornfully.

"It's over, Judgement." Robin said as his teammates took battle poses around him. "Your cohorts have either been subdued or they ran off."

"You may surrender now, please." Starfire added.

A growl followed thereafter by more lasers was Judgement's only reply. The Titans scattered once again. Robin threw another disc at Judgement, this one a smoke bomb which surrounded the Bang Baby in a thick white cloud. Judgement screamed in anger and frustration as she fired her laser bolts blindly into the thick fog surrounding her. "Where are you?!" she demanded. "Show yourselves, heathens!"

Her answer came in a glowing pair of angry green eyes as Starfire flew into the fog and punched Judgment right in the solar plexus, knocking her out of the ice and sending her flying through the air. Robin leapt up into Starfire's arms, the Tamaranean Princess throwing the Boy Wonder after Judgement. He tackled her in mid-air, the two of them tumbling across the road. By the time they came to a stop, Judgement's hands were cuffed behind her back.

As the team ran up to Robin, he grabbed Judgement by the collar and held her face mere inches in front of his own. "What's Slade planning." he demanded.

"I am but his servant. What makes you think I know?" Judgement asked with a sneer.

"You were the one who called the gangs together the night of the New Bang. You were the one that handed out the gas. That means you have closer ties to Slade than any other Bang Baby in the city." Robin coldly said.

"I was his messenger that night. Nothing more, I'm afraid." Judgement said with a wicked grin. Robin growled and held up his fist….

Which was gripped by the wrist by a strong, yet gentle hand. "Robin." Starfire softly said. "She is defeated. And likely knows little of what Slade is planning."

Robin looked up into her jade eyes….and sighed. He let go of Judgement's shirt and climbed off of the villainess. "She is high-ranked enough within Slade's army that her defeat will be of considerable hinderance to Slade." Starfire assured Robin. She smiled warmly at him. "We have won this day." Robin smiled back.

Judgement began laughing harshly. "You've won _nothing_!" she spat. "I may have fallen, but a hundred more soldiers stand ready to take my place! The revolution is far from over! It cannot be stopped! We will tear down your fortress of hedonism brick by - "

Judgement was silenced by duct tape slapped across her mouth by the boy wonder. "I see you're one of those 'loves the sound of their own voice' types." Robin quipped as he stuck his roll of duct tape back into his utility belt.

"You keep duct tape in your utility belt?" Static asked.

Robin shrugged. "Top-of-the-line gadgets are all well and good, but sometimes it's the simple things that work best."

"I guess you could say Judgement _misjudged us_, huh?" Beast Boy cracked.

"….Really, dude? _Really_?" Static asked.

"Welcome to my world." Raven commented.

It was at that point that Cyborg jogged over, looking quite out of breath. "Bad news, guys." he panted. "That pasty little runt slipped away."

"Pixel?" Static asked.

"I _still _don't get it." Cyborg growled. "I practically had him! But he turned the corner, then I turned the corner, and….he suddenly wasn't there anymore."

"Touch and Go got away too." Robin grimly said. "That's half of today's heist crew gone."

"But we have apprehended the other half!" Starfire pointed out. "Judgement, Farsight and Shackle shall now all be in police custody!"

"So…..glass half-full?" Static suggested.

"An excellent suggestion, Friend-Static! I too am most thirsty!" Starfire enthusiastically stated. Static shrugged. Not really what he meant, but he wouldn't say no to a soda. "Shall we celebrate today's victories with refreshments?"

The other Titans all looked to Robin hopefully. The boy wonder relented. "Okay. I guess I could use a good pizza after that fight."

…..

Once the Titans made sure that the three defeated Bang Babies were in police custody (Static was impressed by the handcuffs they locked them up in. Evidently, the JCPD had enough experience with meta-criminals to hold Bang Babies just fine), they headed to their favorite pizzeria, a large two-story building shaped like a slice of pizza. It wasn't just a pizzeria either - the two floors were comprised of the main restaurant down low and an arcade up top. It was a teenager's paradise, unsurprisingly making it one of the most popular hangouts in the city. The Titans all sat at what Beast Boy had called 'their usual table,' implying that they were regulars at this pizzeria.

Static once again felt a little bit odd. Here he was, eating pizza with friends like any normal teenager would do….except he was still in costume. This was the first time he had ever eaten in a public place as his super-powered alter-ego. Even stranger was the fact that none of the civilians in the establishment really made a big deal of the fact that six superheroes were eating in the same restaurant as them. Sure, there were some oohs and aahs, autograph requests and all that. But for the most part, everyone was pretty chill. This never would've happened in Dakota. Static was such a superstar back home, he _knew_ he'd wind up getting mobbed by fans and reporters if he ever ate at a Burger Fool in uniform.

Speaking of Dakota, this would be it. Static's last dinner with the Titans before he had to abandon them and go home. A bittersweet moment, to put it lightly.

"Good work out there today, Titans." Robin said after swallowing a mouth full of Hawaiian. "Judgement was one of Slade's top meta-criminals, so apprehending her should put a decent dent in whatever Slade's planning."

"There's still a lot of metahumans out there, though." Raven pointed out after taking a sip of her soda. "Judgement was right about one thing - this is far from over."

"Well, _bring it on_." Beast Boy said with a wide grin. "We'll just keep on kicking Bang Baby butt until we've run out of butts! Then, we'll move on to Nightstrike's butt. Then finally, Slade's butt." He grabbed another slice of onion-cashew-tofu sausage pizza and started munching happily on it.

"Friend-Beast Boy is correct!" Starfire enthusiastically stated after slurping her…..is that mustard? "We shall emerge victorious as always, so long as we all stand together!" She suddenly thrust her hand to the center of the circular table.

"What are you doing?" Raven asked.

"I am attempting to initiate the 'hands in' ceremony of Earthen camaraderie." Starfire explained. "….Is that inappropriate at the moment?"

"Not at all, Starfire." Robin said as he planted his hand on top of Star's. Raven rolled her eyes and placed her hand on top of Robin's. Cyborg and Beast Boy looked at each other, shrugged, and planted their hands on top of Raven's. They all looked to Static expectantly.

"….Am…..Am I being invited right now?" Static asked.

"Hey, you're a Teen Titan now, remember?" Robin asked. "You're one of us."

"So come on, now!" Cyborg exclaimed. "Hands in and feel the love!"

Static paused in hesitation, then sighed wearily. He had to tell them. "…I have to leave the Tower tomorrow." Static bluntly said, impulsively deciding to just get the bad news over with.

"…..And people call _me _a mood-killer." Raven commented.

"Why?" Starfire asked as she withdrew her hand and stared at Static with big, sad, watery eyes. The other Titans also withdrew their hands and looked at Static expectantly.

"I gotta get back to Dakota." Static said, hating that he was disappointing his new friends like this.

"Aaaawwwww, already?" Beast Boy whined. "You and me are almost to the final level on Zombie Nation 6! I can't complete that level on my own!"

"And you've been helping me improve the T-Car." Cyborg said.

"And you introduced me to the glory of the Uptown Funk." Starfire added.

"And all of that isn't even mentioning your skillset." Robin said. "You've become a big help around here, Static. And I'll be honest with you, I'd hate to lose a good pair of hands at a time like this."

"I know, I know." Static said. "It's just that I've got school on Monday and - "

"You go to school?" Beast Boy asked.

Static paused at that. "Er, yeah." Static said. He paused again. "Don't you guys?"

"Not exactly." Robin replied. Static was taken aback by this. He would imagine the Teen Titans as being many things, but high school dropouts were pretty close to the bottom of that list. "You see, Cyborg already graduated high school. Raven and Starfire aren't American citizens….or Earth citizens for that matter….so they're not legally required to attend school. As for Beast Boy and I, we take online classes."

"Online classes?" Static asked.

Robin nodded. "We're working on getting our G.E.D.'s. We attend class and take tests all on our own time. It's for the best. If we all just went to school like everyone else our age, it would give the criminals in this city license to commit as many crimes as they want between 9am and 4pm."

"Plus, I'm green." Beast Boy pointed out. "I kinda stand out in a crowd, so public school ain't exactly a preferable option for me."

"…..Huh." Static replied, not really sure how to respond to all that, except to once again think about how the Titans were _way _more dedicated to the job than he was. He was starting to feel a little inadequate, truth be told.

Beast Boy's expression suddenly brightened. "Hold the phone!" he suddenly exclaimed. "What if we sign Static up for those same online classes we take? Then he won't _have _to leave!"

"A most wonderful idea!" Starfire said as she clapped her hands in approval.

"I don't think his old school is going to appreciate that." Raven pointed out.

"Plus, I'm not even sure that's a thing we can do." Static added. "….Is it?"

"Totally!" Beast Boy replied. "I mean, sure, there'd probably be a lot of paperwork involved, but I'll bet it's totally do-able!"

"I dunno….." Static replied, still unsure.

"Pleeeeaaaaase?" Beast Boy and Starfire pleaded in unison, giving the Dakota teen big wet eyes. Beast Boy even morphed into a tiny adorable kitten for good measure, mewing at him.

"Do I look like an eight-year-old to you?" Static asked Beast Boy with an arced eyebrow.

Beast Boy morphed back. "Right. Sometimes I forget that only works on chicks." he commented. "But come ooooooon! You know you want to….."

Beast Boy was right. Static really _did _want to. Being a Teen Titan was, quite frankly, awesome. And not just because of that rockin' widescreen plasma TV the Titans have or the awesome games room or any of that stuff (although those things certainly helped). No, the biggest appeal of being a Titan for Static was the sense of camaraderie. He remembered helping the Justice League fight Brainiac once, and though it felt great to have some of the greatest heroes on Earth acknowledge and congratulate him, he still knew in the back of his mind that they only saw him as a kid. A kid with potential, but a kid nonetheless.

The Titans were different. None of them, not even their leader Robin, ever looked down on him. They never called him 'kid' or complimented his 'potential' or anything like that. They treated him as nothing short of an equal, as one of them. Static wasn't a kid anymore and the Titans were the first super heroes to not only recognize that, but offer him a place in their fold because of it. It didn't just made him feel validated, it made him feel _accepted_. It filled him with a sense of belonging that he never really felt before. It suddenly made a lot more sense to him, how he was able to make friends with the Titans so fast.

He didn't want to go back to Dakota. Not if it meant bailing on the team.

Not if it meant bailing on _his _team.

"You know what? Hell with it." Static said. "I've only got like a month of school left anyways, and I can do that online standing on my head. I'm not going nowhere until Slade, Nightstrike and every last Bang Baby in this city are all locked up in one cozy cell."

"Huzzah!" Starfire cheered. Beast Boy gave Static a wide grin as Cyborg and Robin both smiled and nodded in approval. Raven's face remained as bland as ever, though she did give Static a small, non-committal thumbs up. "I would like to give the hands-in ceremony a second attempt!" Starfire declared as she thrust her hand into the center of the table. Robin clasped his hand on top of hers, followed by Raven, Beast Boy and Cyborg.

Static smiled as he planted his own hand on top of the pile this time.

"Titans together!" Robin cheered. The other five Titans, especially Static, repeated the chant as their hands broke apart.

….

"What do you mean you're staying?!" Richie demanded over the shock vox. "What part of 'we have school on Monday' did you not understand?!"

"Rich, relax, I've got it covered." Static said as he sat at his desk, typing on spare a laptop that Cyborg had let him borrow (the guy had, like, three). "I'll be taking online classes for a while. Heck, might even take 'em for the rest of the year."

"Online classes - the hell are you talking about?" Richie demanded further.

"Get this, Rich. Dakota Union High has its own online program." Static went on as he checked out the school's website. "Technically, I can stay up to date on all lessons and tests for the rest of the year, without even needing to leave the Tower! I don't have to go nowhere!"

"I….I just….." Richie said before sighing in defeat. "Are you really _that _determined to see this whole 'New Bang' thing through?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. Yes I am." Static replied indignantly. He was starting to get tired of Richie's attitude.

"It took Dakota _years _to completely undo the Big Bang." Richie argued. "Are you really willing to stay in Jump City for _that _long?"

"Actually, it took Dakota years to come up with a _cure_ for the Big Bang." Static countered. "There's already a cure for the stuff. I'll bet Dr. Todd's been brewing up a batch of cure for the New Bang since it went down, and he'll ship it over to Jump when it's done. I give it another week, maybe two."

"It's not that simple, bro." Richie pointed out. "The gas behind the New Bang is different from the Big Bang. The _formula_ is different. Alva Industries shared notes with me on the stuff, and from what I've read, I doubt the cure is gonna work this time."

"So Dr. Todd will have to tweak the cure a bit." Static said. "Then that means, what, we're actually looking at _three _weeks? You need to chill out, Rich."

"What am I gonna tell your dad?" Richie asked. "Or Sharon? Or Daisy? Or Frieda? Or _literally everyone_?!"

"I dunno, tell them I got transferred to a school out of state or something. As for Pops, tell him what I told you. I'm staying until the job's done. Period." Static said with finality. "Aaaaand done! I'm an online student now!" he added as he completed the application.

"Good for you." Richie sarcastically said. "Any other curve balls you wanna throw at me before we call it a day?"

"I'm sensing some resentment." Static commented.

"Was I that obvious?" Richie said, also sarcastically.

"You know, I just remembered, I got the patrol shift tonight." Static said. It was actually a lie, and he wanted an excuse to cut himself off from Richie's attitude.

"Yeah, and I think I've got some work to do myself." Richie replied. "Talk to you later." And on that note, the connection was cut. Static sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Richie was his best friend and all, but sometimes the guy acted more like a clingy girlfriend. He should've known that he wouldn't take the news very well.

_Whatever_. Static thought as he got up out of his chair and left his room, heading down to the gym to work out some of his frustration. _He just needs some time to himself. He and I will be cool again in a day or two._

…

Pacific View Apartments was nowhere near as nice of an apartment building as the name let on. Located in the projects of Jump City, the large apartment building was a run down temple of corruption, home to drug dealers, petty thieves, and innocent victims of circumstance. Despite all that, the old crap-shack had never looked more beautiful in Pixel's eyes as he entered the building. He removed his bandana and goggles as he ascended the stairs, reaching into his pocket and putting his glasses back on, grateful to both see and breathe clearly again.

It was lucky that he had played Mortal Kombat X before the heist earlier that day. He mained Sub-Zero, but he was also pretty good with Reptile, whose invisibility powers allowed him to evade the Teen Titan Cyborg and slip out of the fight. He _definitely _needs to play Reptile more often - he could already imagine several future situations where that ability would save his hide.

He still couldn't believe that heist went south so fast. Everything was going great up until the T-Car showed up on their radar. Not only did the Titans show up, but that nutcase Judgement got it stuck in her head that fighting them instead of running was somehow a _good_ idea. Turns out, it wasn't. Big shock.

Still, the heist wasn't a _total _bust. He smiled as he reached into his khaki shorts' pocket and felt the fat stack of benjamins he was able to swipe on his way out. He had to have at least ten grand there - already enough for a better apartment, which he desperately needed. Not bad for a completely botched heist. He made a mental note to avoid Judgement in the future though. That bitch was way too crazy. Hell, maybe he should just avoid people in general. Try flying solo for a while.

He opened the door to his apartment, and found Touch and Go sitting on his couch, watching his TV.

"…..What." Pixel said as he closed the door behind him. The two girls turned towards him and smiled.

"Hey there, new roomie!" Touch enthusiastically said. "Man, don't take this the wrong way, but you live in a _rough _part of town. I can see why you keep your door locked. There are horrible people out there."

"There are horrible people in here." Pixel quipped in reply. "How did you two get away?"

"Soon as I saw that things were going belly up, I grabbed Touch and bolted. Gotta love super-speed." Go explained. "What about you?"

"Invisibility powers." Pixel shrugged.

"Wait, I thought you had ice powers." Touch said.

"Ice? I thought he had fire powers." Go commented.

"It's….kinda complicated." Pixel said. "Let's just say my power-set varies from situation to situation. But enough about me, let's talk about you two. Specifically, _what are you doing in my home._"

"We needed a place to crash." Touch answered simply.

"_So go to your own home._" Pixel all but hissed.

"We would if we had one." Go said. "Touch and I are homeless."

"So just go squat under a bridge, or something." Pixel said.

"Aw come on! Help some sisters out!" Touch replied. "After a heist like that, the police are gonna be out for blood tonight! We're talking rapid dobermans sniffing in every alley and police helicopters patrolling the skies. We need a place to lay low."

"And how is any of that _my _problem?" Pixel asked.

"You were at the heist too, genius." Touch countered. "How much you wanna bet they'll be looking for you too?"

"That's why I was wearing a bandana and goggles." Pixel said. "See, unlike the rest of you idiots, I actually realized that, maybe, _just maybe, _I oughta cover my face while stealing stuff. That means that the police won't think to come looking for a Bang Baby in _my _apartment."

"Yet another reason this is the perfect place for us to lay low." Touch pointed out.

"Unless _you _lead the cops here_._" Pixel countered.

"Oh relax. Go here moved so fast, she barely left a trail for the cops to follow. We're solid as long as we don't do anything to draw attention to ourselves. We won't raise a fuss over this if you don't." Touch replied before turning away from Pixel. "By the way, you're gonna need to pick up more milk tomorrow."

Pixel stood there, fuming and clenching his fists in aggravation. "In all seriousness though, we're all better off sticking together." Go said. "Especially now that there are _six _'you-know-who's' up in that tower."

"Who even _was _that guy anyway? I ain't never seen him before." Touch commented.

"Well whoever he is, he actually stopped me dead in my tracks for a while. Remind me to steer clear of him." Go replied.

"His name is Static. He's from Dakota." Pixel said.

"How do you know that?" Touch asked.

"I do a lot of research on super heroes. 'Know thy enemy' and all that." Pixel replied. "Anyway, Dakota is where the first Big Bang happened, and probably where Slade got the gas from. Small wonder then that Static's sticking his nose around here."

"And now he's joining forces with those five separate pains in the ass." Touch scowled. "Perfect. Once the heat dies down, we'll have to go look for a new crew. No way we'd be able to take freaking _six_ of them on our own."

"Fine." Pixel spat. "But next time, let's stay away from crews led by egomaniacs with god complexes_._"

"Fair enough." Touch replied.

…

**Big thank you / shout out to all the fans who submitted their OCs for this chapter!**

**Krulla Chief (Pixel)**

**Hootyman (Farsight)**

**bekkihaiti (Touch and Go)**

**Zgamer (Shackle) (Also created Torque and Featherweight, who fought the Titans off-screen in the last chapter)**

**Judgement was an OC written and owned by Yours Truly ;)**

**Also, PHEW. I do believe this is the longest chapter of Titan Shock to date. And it was like, three days late too! Titan Shock readers may be grossly disappointed in me for that. To which I say - "Now you know how Last Spartan readers feel."**

**But wait, more bad news! Remember at the beginning of this fanfic when I said that I was several chapters ahead of the update schedule? Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. I'm all caught up. Soooooo….what now?**

**I'm thinking of putting this fanfic on hiatus for a little while. Consider this chapter a "season finale" of sorts until I can write some more stuff down.**

**Tune in…eventually…..for the next exciting chapter!**


	9. The Spark

**Word of warning: There's going to be shipping in this chapter. And several other chapters to come.**

**Why?**

**Because it's a Teen Titans fanfic.**

**A Teen Titans fanfic without shipping is like a night without stars.**

…

"And…Go!"

Static shot a static bolt at Robin, but the Titans' leader leapt into the air and threw a pair of birdarangs at the Dakota teen. Static zapped the weapons out of the air and hurled them back at the boy wonder, who expertly caught them, his gloves ensuring that the electric current running through them wouldn't affect him. Robin tossed a smoke bomb onto the ground, and a furious white fog erupted across the mat. Static zapped the gas and pushed it away in a bubble of electricity…..

Just in time to see Robin lunge at him with his bo-staff. He caught the incoming blow with his hands, then started to pump everything he had into the staff, knowing that he had to really pour on the voltage to get through Robin's gloves. The tactic eventually worked, as Robin was stunned long enough for Static to boot him in the gut and knock him back, but Robin landed on the ground hands first and flipped back onto his feet. He smirked. "Not bad." he complemented.

"Likewise." Static said as he smirked back. He had used up a lot of power to zap Robin just then, but he wasn't about to let him know that.

The Titans had decided to spend their Saturday morning doing some light combat training, Static being the first to volunteer when Robin asked for an opponent. They had been going one-on-one with one another on a large gymnastics mat for a couple of minutes now, with the other four Titans looking on. Well, three of them anyway. Raven was off in the corner, meditating, as she often did in between sparring matches.

Static tossed the bo-staff back to Robin before putting up his fists again, static electricity crackling from them. Robin smirked and charged forward, using his bo-staff as a pole-vault. Seeing an opportunity, Static zapped the staff as it hit the mat…..

But not fast enough as Robin let go of the staff just as it was zapped and flew through the air. Landing right in front of the Dakota teen, Robin unleashed his fury. Open-palm strike to the nose, double-handed slap to the ears, capped off by a kick to the solar plexus that sent Static flying through the air. Static groaned in pain as he lied on the ground. Robin planted his boot on the electric hero's chest and pointed his bo-staff at his nose.

"Aaaaand point to Robin." Cyborg said. "Don't feel too bad, Static. Robin whoops pretty much everybody's butts."

"I can see that." Static commented once he got some wind back in his lungs. Robin took his boot off of Static and helped him up.

"You're good, but I can already see a problem with your techniques." Robin said. "You're mostly a ranged fighter, Static. You're at your best when there's a decent amount of distance between you and your enemy. It's when enemies get in close that they have you at a disadvantage. You need to work on your hand-to-hand combat skills."

"Hand-to-hand?" Static asked. "Isn't that _your _thing?"

"It is. Your point?" Robin asked.

"Well, zapping stuff is _my _thing." Static said as he snapped his fingers, sparks flying out as he did so. "So I'm not a tenth-degree black belt. But as long as I keep bad guys from getting too close, which isn't exactly hard with my powers, I'm good."

"It's not that simple." Robin replied. "I've done my research on you Static, and I know what your kryptonite is. All it takes is some water to short out your powers, and whenever that happens you're basically helpless. You're making the classic superhero mistake of relying on your powers too much."

"Hey, I've been able to get out of scrapes like that before." Static countered.

"And you were lucky to get out of those messes, but luck isn't something you want to rely on too heavily in a fight." Robin said.

"Come on man, get off my back." Static groaned. "What about Starfire and Raven? They're ranged fighters too, but I don't see you training them in the arts of Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon."

"Starfire can lift objects eight hundred times her own weight and can withstand point-blank grenades blasts, so I don't really need to worry about her holding her own in melee range." Robin said. "As for Raven, she was raised by the Monks of Azarath, who actually taught her a thing or two about hand-to-hand combat."

"Hold up." Static said. "You're telling me Raven is a sorceress _and _she knows kung-fu?"

"It's called manus-pansa." Raven said from her corner. She was still floating in place, her back to the other Titans, still looking like she was meditating. But evidently, it seemed as though she had been listening in on the discussion. "It's the Azarathian art of self-defense. I don't use it much, as I don't often need to. But when I do need it, it serves me well enough."

"That's putting it lightly. Raven's the second-best hand-to-hand combatant on the team!" Beast Boy enthusiastically added. "Heck, she's even kicked Robin's butt a few times during these combat drills."

"Really?" Static asked with a raised eyebrow. "Okay, this I gotta see for myself." He turned to Raven. "Yo Raven! Why don't you get on the mat and show me whatcha got!"

"I'm fine, thanks." the sorceress replied.

"Come on, girl." Static insisted. "I thought you were a Raven, not a Chicken!"

Beast Boy doubled over laughing. "Good one!" he hollered at Static while giving him a thumbs up.

"Yes! It is amusing because both ravens and chickens are each a kind of bird!" Starfire added. She turned to Cyborg with an expectant look on her face. He nodded at her, confirming that that was indeed the joke. Starfire giggled again, both from the joke and from the excited satisfaction that she was getting the hang of Earth humor.

Apparently, the teasing from her friends was enough to spur Raven from her meditation and she stood up. "Robin. I volunteer to face Static next." she evenly said.

"He's all yours." Robin replied with a smirk. He patted Static's shoulder as he walked off the mat. "It was nice knowing ya, buddy." he quietly commented as he joined the other Titans to spectate. Raven floated over to the side of the mat opposite Static's and settled on the floor. A hand emerged from her cloak to loosen the button around her neck keeping it on, removing the cloak and gently setting down to the side.

It was at that point that Static realized that he had never really seen Raven without her cloak on before. She wore her signature cloak everywhere she went, 24/7, and it did a pretty good job of covering up pretty much everything below the neck. Occasionally, he would catch a glimpse of what was underneath, usually in a fight, but it was always shrouded in the cloak's own shadow. He knew what her arms and hands looked like from seeing her fight and from holding a book she was reading, but that was about it. He never even got a really good look at her face, which was always at least partially obscured by her cloak's hood.

Now there she was, with no cloak or hood obscuring her at all. He could see everything now. Her grey skin, her hourglass figure, her wide hips and legs that seemed to go on for days. Her face was pretty too, round and soft and with short purple hair that framed it well. Faced with this reveal, Static's hormone-fueled teenaged brain couldn't help but make the following observation.

Raven was _fine._

It was at that point that Static was unceremoniously sprayed with cold water. "What the hell?!" he demanded as he looked over at Beast Boy holding a super-soaker.

"Sorry bro, Robin's orders." Beast Boy apologized in a tone that was in no way a real apology.

"This match will have a stipulation - no using your powers." Robin replied. Sure enough, Static looked down on his hand and saw the futile sparks dancing across his fingers. He tried to whip up a charge, but got zilch. "Raven, that goes for you too, just to keep things fair."

"Don't even think about it, Beast Boy." Raven commented as she fixed a glare on the green hero. He set down the super soaker and put his hands up, wisely heeding her implied threat.

"And…..Go!" Cyborg shouted.

Static charged in first, while Raven was still standing where she stood, his hope being to catch her off-guard with a first strike. He cocked back his fist and threw the first punch…..

Which Raven swatted to the side with an open palm, as though his fist was little more than an errant fly. The deflection created a window for Raven to exploit as she stuck his vulnerable chest with an open hand strike, followed up by an upward kick that barely whiffed past his chin, Static jerking his head back on reflex just in time.

Static tried another wild punch, but the punch was once again easily deflected by Raven's hands. This kept up for a few seconds up until she dealt an open-palm strike right to his nose, followed by another right to his forehead. Seeing stars, Static was all but helpless as Raven then leapt into the air and delivered a kick right to his chest, knocking him down onto his back. As his world slowly came back into focus, he saw Raven smirking as she looked down on him, Beast Boy's howling laughter easily audible from the sidelines.

"I believe that's game." Cyborg wryly commented.

"Take five, Static." Robin said as he helped the Dakota teen back up. As Static walked back over to the bench to towel off and chug some water, he watched Raven do the same. Once she was done wiping her forehead, she grabbed her cloak, put it back on, then went back to meditating like nothing even happened.

…_.Damn._ Static thought to himself.

…

Once hand-to-hand drills were done, the group moved on to more individualized workouts, something that Static was openly grateful for. "Finally. Something I can actually do. _Without _getting knocked flat on my butt." he said as he and Cyborg walked over to the weight area.

"You lift?" Cyborg asked, a little surprised.

"A little bit." Static replied with a shrug. He flexed his arms. "How do you think I got _these _puppies?" He then grabbed a couple of twenty-lb dumbbells and started lifting.

"Puppies is right. They're just _adorable._" Cyborg teased. He positioned himself under the massive, twenty-ton weight load bigger than he is and started lifting himself.

"Hey, not all of us can benchpress a semi, big man." Static countered.

"You mean like how not all of us can be tenth-degree black belts?" Beast Boy teased as he strode over to join the two. "Don't mind me. Just thought I'd pump a little iron myself." the green hero said as he grabbed a pair of twenty-pound dumbbells himself and started lifting. Static just arced an eyebrow at the green hero. "What? You got knocked the hell out back there! Not like I'm wrong."

"Rob's got a point, you know. You can't zap 'em all." Cyborg said, steering the conversation back on topic.

"I know. That's why I started workin' out a couple years back, because I knew how physical superhero work gets. Guess that's not enough though." Static replied.

"Ah, don't sweat it, man." Cyborg said. "I'll bet Rob or Rae would be willing to teach you a thing or two on how to throw a punch."

"Yeah, I'll bet Raven will be more than happy to school you again, dude." Beast Boy added with a snicker.

"Yeah. Raven." Static said as he looked over to where Raven was. She was still meditating on the far side of the gym area, this time while floating, several objects such as weights and medicine balls floating around her, orbiting her like she was a celestial body.

"Yo Static. Mind upping the ante over here?" Cyborg asked. "I'm done with my warm-ups."

"Sure thing." Static said as he walked over to the weight machine and punched in a slightly heavier weight. Cyborg continued to lift, his legs bending and stretching as he pumped the massive weight above him, this time with more effort but with a wider grin.

"So Cy. The T-Car all nice and clean yet?" Beast Boy asked with a knowing smirk. Cyborg sent a fierce scowl at the changeling.

"I'm gonna get you back for that one. Just you wait." Cyborg hissed.

"You haven't tried anything worse than a robo-noogie yet." Beast Boy pointed out.

"Oh it's comin'." Cyborg said. "You can't rush these things, BB. Revenge is a dish best served cold." Truth be told, the only reason Cyborg hadn't pranked Beast Boy back yet was because he couldn't come up with an appropriate retaliatory prank. A simple whoopee-cushion or bucket of water wasn't going to cut it. No. For what the little grass-stain did to his Baby, his vengeance had to be _legendary_. Something the changeling would never forget. Something that he would be describing to a therapist ten years after the fact. Something not only embarrassing, but _emotionally scarring._ He had yet come up with such a vengeance, unfortunately, so for now he was simply waiting for inspiration to strike.

Feeling confidant that he got his weights in, Cyborg stepped out from under the machine, and carefully set down the weight. Even placed as gently as possible, it still created a bang loud enough to echo throughout the cavernous garage area of the Tower. As Cyborg toweled off and grabbed a water bottle, he saw that Static was still pumping the same twenty-lb dumbbells, seemingly staring off into space. Odd. Shouldn't he have moved on to something heavier by now? Cyborg followed the young man's gaze and found that he was looking at Raven.

"Dude. What are you staring at Raven for?" Beast Boy asked, also noticing the Dakota teen's line of sight.

"Huh?" Static asked as he was snapped back from reality.

"You were staring at Raven." Beast Boy pointed out.

Static suddenly looked shocked, his eyes darting around. "Uh….no I wasn't."

"Dude. I saw." Beast Boy said. "You were lookin' right at her."

"Yeah, I saw that too." Cyborg added.

"She got a mustard stain on her cloak or somethin'?" Beast Boy asked as he stared at the sorceress.

"No, she's perfect." Static quickly said. BB turned to Static with a curious look. "I mean the cloak! The cloak is perfect!"

A wide grin spread across Beast Boy's face. "Dude…were you checking her out?"

"I….I uh…" Static said, a flush of embarrassment spreading across his cheeks. "….Kind of?"

Beast Boy paused, oddly silent. "….Pfft-AHAHAHAHAHAHHAAAA!" he burst out laughing, gripping his gut as he fell onto the floor butt-first. "You….You were checking - AHAHAHAHAHAHA THAT IS TOO GOOD!" he collapsed onto his back and started kicking his feet into the air and slamming his fist on the floor. Static grimaced, clearly not appreciating the mockery.

"Okay…..okay….." Beast Boy gasped as he tried to collect himself. "I'm done." he said as he stood back up. Static opened his mouth to say something….

Beast Boy then morphed into a hyena and laughed and cackled, rolling on the floor with his paws in the air. Static growled at the changeling, his body giving off sparks of electricity as his temper flared.

…..And that was when it happened. Inspiration finally struck Cyborg.

It was an idea. An _awful _idea. Hands-down, it was the single most evil idea that had ever crawled its way into Cyborg's brain. A part of him knew that it was probably overkill - it was simply too cruel to actually follow through on. But damn it all, BB dumped paint on his Baby. _Nobody messes with his Baby. _The time for mercy had long since passed.

"….You know Static…Raven's single." Cyborg commented.

"Say what?" Static asked, completely forgetting about his anger.

"Say what?" Beast Boy asked as he morphed back into a human, completely forgetting about his laughter.

"Yeah. So if you really like her so much, you should ask her out." Cyborg said with a thumbs-up.

"Woah woah woah WOAH. Time out. Slow down. That is a _bad _idea." Beast Boy said as he stood back up. He wrapped an arm around Static's shoulder. "Listen Static. Raven isn't what you'd call 'the dating type.' You're my friend, which is why I'd hate it if something happened to you."

"Something happened?" Static asked.

"I'll be blunt. If you try to ask out Raven, she'll probably banish you to another dimension." Beast Boy elaborated. "She's cranky like that."

"Ah, don't let him scare ya." Cyborg said as he put his own arm around Static's shoulders from the side opposite Beast Boy. "Raven may take a while to warm up to people, but once she does, she's a real sweetheart."

"Many words come to mind when I think of Raven, but 'sweetheart' is definitely NOT one of them." Beast Boy argued.

"Besides, maybe she just needs a handsome young gentleman to come along and woo her." Cyborg went on. "I mean have you looked in the mirror lately, Static? You're a very pretty man."

"Very true." Static replied with a smirk.

"Dude, it takes a _lot _more than just pretty to 'woo' Raven." Beast Boy countered. He snapped his fingers. "Oh! And how could I forget! To get to Raven, you gotta go through Robin first."

"Robin?" Static asked as he looked over to the boy wonder, who was viciously attacking a large punching bag a few mats away. Starfire was holding the bag steady for him as he assaulted it with his fists and boots.

"Yeah. See Robin and Raven? They're like _this_." Beast Boy said as he crossed his fingers. "Like brother and sister, and all the protective instincts that entail. So….you'd basically be asking out the team leader's little sister."

"Oooooh." Static said as he realized the implications of that.

"Oh relax, will ya?" Cyborg said. "You already know Robin likes and trusts you enough. I'm willing to bet he's got no problem with you asking out Raven."

"Er…" Static was evidently unsure of the prospect of asking permission to date Raven from the team leader.

"Come on, don't be such a chicken. Worst that can happen is he says no." Cyborg said.

"Either that or he gives you plastic surgery with his boots." Beast Boy added.

"Go on, Romeo. Destiny waits for no man!" With that, he harshly shoved Static in the general direction of Robin. The Dakota teen looked over his shoulder and saw Cyborg giving him the thumbs-up and Beast Boy giving him an evil grin. He took a breath and approached the team leader. Cyborg zoomed in with his robotic eye and turned up his audio receptors to see and hear the situation better.

"Yo Robin. Can I talk to you for a sec?" Static asked.

"What is it?" Robin replied as he stopped his assault on that poor beaten up bag. Starfire also gave Static her undivided attention, similarly curious.

"Well…" Static began, a little bit nervous. "I've noticed recently that Raven is kind of…..easy on the eyes, let's say. And…..Cyborg told me that she isn't seeing anyone….so I'm thinking of asking her out. Except Beast Boy told me how tight you and Raven were, so I figured I oughta check and make sure it would be cool with you before trying anything."

Starfire gasped as her eyes lit up. "You wish to court Raven?" she asked excitedly.

"Well….if Robin's okay with it, then yeah." Static replied. Starfire squealed as she wrapped Static in a tight hug.

"Oh, most joyous of days!" Starfire declared. "Robin! Won't you please give Static your blessing so that he may begin the courtship?" Robin simply stroked his chin in thought. He then shrugged.

"I suppose so." Robin said.

"Woah. Really?" Static asked.

"Glorious!" Starfire as she hugged Static tighter.

"Star….ribs…..my ribs….." Static wheezed.

"Oh. My apologies." Starfire said as she let go, allowing the electric hero to catch his breath.

"A couple of things though." Robin said. "First of all, I wouldn't expect a yes when you ask her out. Raven's not exactly the dating type."

"But what if I do get a yes?" Static asked in a hopeful tone.

"That brings me to my second point. If you two do end up dating, you treat her with _respect_." Robin sternly told him. "If I know Raven, she'll probably prefer to take things slow. You respect that. Don't rush her or push her into _anything _she doesn't want to do. Otherwise, you'll have to answer to _me._ Got that?"

"Don't worry, Rob. I'll be a perfect gentleman." Static said with a thumbs up.

"I wish you the best of luck in winning Raven's heart!" Starfire said.

Static nodded his thanks to both Starfire and Robin as he walked back to rejoin Cyborg and Beast Boy. "I've got the green light from Robin." Static said with two thumbs up.

"I knew you would!" Cyborg said with a triumphant chuckle.

"You're lucky Starfire was there to help convince Robin. He can _never _say no to her." Beast Boy said. He then put on a devilish grin. "All you gotta do now is ask out the queen of mean herself. Don't worry, I'll be sure to arrange your funeral."

"Yeah, yeah." Static said, brushing off Beast Boy's comments. He turned to where Raven was…..

Only to find she was gone.

"Where'd she go?" Static asked.

"She must be done meditating. Probably teleported back to her room when no one was looking. She does that sometimes." Cyborg said.

Static lifted up his arm and smelled his armpit, then wrinkled his nose. "Just as well. I kinda stink from all the sweat. If I'm gonna ask Raven out, I'm gonna need to make myself more presentable." With that, Static began making his way out of the gym area and presumably to the nearest bathroom to shower.

"Dead man walking…" Beast Boy commented as he watched Static walk away.

"You seem awfully confidant that Raven won't go out with him." Cyborg commented as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Come on. This is _Raven _we're talking about." Beast Boy said. "You and I both know that she'd never go for a guy like Static."

"Wouldn't she?"

"Uh, yeah, she wouldn't."

"…..Wanna bet?"

"…..How much?"

"Fifty bucks."

Beast Boy whistled. "You must be in quite the generous mood to be making such a large donation to my wallet, Cy." he said before shaking Cyborg's hand. "You're on."

…..

Static made his way to the bathroom and, after tossing his dirty uniform in the laundry bin, hopped into the shower and started washing himself with enthusiasm. A part of his brain still couldn't quite believe it. A girl. He was going to ask out a girl. He was going to ask out a girl for the first time in, like, a year. As he scrubbed himself and thought about his upcoming 'courtship' as Starfire had called it, he couldn't help but think about how woefully inexperienced he was in the realm of romance. Throughout his adolescence, he only ever had two big crushes. Frieda Goren and Daisy Watkins.

Frieda had been a good friend of his since middle school, and Virgil had had a crush on her up until a couple years ago. He never really acted on his feelings for Frieda, so they never became anything more than just friends. Then along came Daisy. He met her during his brief stint at the Ben Moore Charter School for Science a couple years back. Unlike Frieda, Virgil was actually able to go on a few dates with Daisy. Well, if you could call studying for tests together 'dates.' They were study dates, which totally counted as dates, regardless of what Sharon said.

But once again, Virgil and Daisy never really became more than friends. It wasn't because he wasn't willing to act on his feelings - he totally was. His missed opportunity with Frieda had taught him that you had to go for it while you could. This time however, it was his superhero duties that were to blame. He would end up disappearing on Daisy at the most inopportune times, even in the middle of their study dates, to the point where it became obvious that Daisy kind of resented him for it. At some point, they both came to an unspoken agreement to simply remain friends. He honestly did hate leaving her hanging all the time, but he couldn't very well ignore a break-in or apartment fire for the sake of a date.

With his career in vigilantism rendering any and all romantic prospects futile, he had all but thrown in the towel on such things. He's never even gotten to kiss a girl, a thought which filled him with no small amount of self-pity. He was seventeen, for crying out loud. He really should've gotten to kiss a girl by now. And no, not just those grateful pecks on the cheek female citizens would give him after he saved them, but straight up frenching it with a hottie for ten good minutes in a closet! Hell, for that matter, he should've hit second base by now!

He turned down the heat of the shower's water by a significant amount, realizing that his sexual frustration was starting to get the better of him.

Anyway, the point was that Static wasn't very romantically experienced, mostly because his superhero work made dating too difficult. That said though, he had a good feeling about Raven. A _really _good feeling. He knew that the problems that got between him and Daisy wouldn't get between him and Raven, because she was a superhero just like he was. If an emergency popped up in the middle of their date, he wouldn't be bailing on her, because she would probably be going with him to lend a hand. He loved that idea - of a relationship not getting ruined by his superhero work. Hell, if anything, his superhero work might _help _his romantic life for once.

Course, all of that would be a moot point if he couldn't get Raven to agree to a date. Hence the shower, followed by the shaving. And the tooth brushing. And mouthwash. And deodorant. Followed after by_ more_ mouthwash. He didn't doubt that Beast Boy had a point - Raven definitely came across as a hard girl to impress. If this was going to happen, he'd have to really bring his A-game.

In fact, now that he thought about it, he wouldn't just need his A-game. He needed help. He needed someone with inside information on what Raven wanted in a dude. He knew that there was only one person in the Tower who could answer those questions.

"Yo, Starfire!" Static hollered as he knocked on the Tamaranean's door, ten minutes after he'd washed up and changed into a clean uniform. The door opened, revealing -

*THWOP*

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Static shouted as Silkie flew through the air and landed on his face. Starfire floated through the doorway and pulled Silkie off of the poor young man's face.

"Silkie appears to like you." the Tamaranean beamed at Static.

"Yeah. I noticed." Static replied.

"So how goes your courtship with Raven?" she asked.

"That's actually what I'm here about." Static said. "You're Raven's best friend, right?" Starfire nodded. "Well, maybe you could tell me how to impress her?"

Starfire gasped in delight. Static was beginning to notice that she does that a lot. "I have a better idea! I shall show you!" Starfire said as she tossed Silkie back onto her bed before grabbing Static by the arm and dragging him down the corridor.

"Where we goin'?" Static asked.

"To the Mall of Shopping!" Starfire triumphantly answered.

…

The Centerfield Mall was like any other mall you could imagine in America. Large, dozens of different stores, and naturally, crawling with teenagers. Starfire was pretty convinced that the secret to wooing a certain gloomy sorceress was somewhere in here.

"Barnes and Nobles?" Static asked as he and Starfire stood outside the eponymous bookstore.

"Oh yes. Raven adores books!" Starfire replied.

"I noticed." Static commented. Frankly he was glad that a visit to Hot Topic wasn't on the itinerary.

"Come, friend-Static! We must turn you into a poet!" Starfire declared as she dragged Static inside.

"Okay, okay, you don't need to drag me everywhere!" Static protested.

Deeper into the book shop was the poetry section. The Tamaranean provided Static with several different books on the subject. "Raven loves poetry! Mastering the spoken word will be vital in winning her heart!"

"I dunno…" Static said as he skimmed through the books. "It's not really my thing. I mean, I don't wanna be somethin' I'm not. I wanna be _real _with Raven, you know?"

"True, but I have read that shared interests are an important part of Earth courtship." Starfire explained as she floated around Static, beaming a smile at him. "In the field of romance, poetry is a skill well worth mastering! It shall create a window for Raven to look into your heart! You will see!"

"Whatever you say, Fairy Godmother." Static quipped as he continued skimming through the books. A bunch of names that didn't ring any bells, a few poems whose themes flew right over his head, Static was suddenly wishing he had paid more attention in english class. He suddenly stopped on one of the dozens of poetry books that Starfire randomly handed to him, one whose title immediately leapt out at thim.

_The Dead Emcee Scrolls: The Lost Teachings of Hip-Hop and Connected Writing_

"…..Huh." Static said as he opened the book and started skimming the book's contents. "Hm."

"Oh?" Starfire asked.

"I think I found some poetry that actually _is _my thing." Static said with a smile.

It was then that the two heard an alarm go off elsewhere in the mall. Static groaned. "Bad guys around here have the _worst _timing." he grumbled as he reached into his pocket for his saucer. As the two heroes darted out the door, Static slammed the book on the counter along with some money. "I'll be back for the receipt!" Static told the cashier as he stuffed the book into his inner coat pocket and followed Starfire out of the bookstore and towards the source of the alarm.

They arrived at the alarm's source - an electronics store with a broken window. Someone was standing outside, wearing a trench coat and trilby, but those garments couldn't hide the scaly skin, slit-eyes and the large, muscular tail. Definitely a Bang Baby, and an ugly one at that. The lizard man was shocked by the arrival of the teens. "How'd you two get here so quick?" he demanded in a vaguely asian accent.

"Fun fact: Superheroes like to shop too." Static answered.

"Cease and desist your crime-committing!" Starfire ordered, her eyes and hands glowing green.

The lizard smiled. "Darkwing! Serpentine! Now!" he shouted.

Two more meta-humans appeared. The first looked like he was half-man, half-bat. A 'manbat,' if you will. The bat creature shrieked as he swooped down from the rafters and tackled Starfire to the ground. The second one leapt from a nearby indoor tree and tackled Static to the ground as well. As he hit the ground, he saw a large, snake-like scaly body wrapping around and squeezing him. Attached to the body was the upper half of a young woman with similarly scaly skin. She grinned at him hungrily.

Meanwhile, the lizard man looked through the hole in the window. "Titans here already!" he shouted.

"Really?!" an excited female voice asked before another meta human leapt through the window. This young woman was the freakiest-looking one yet, covered in brown fuzz and four, spider-like appendages protruding from her back. Even freakier than that, she had four eyes - another pair right above the other one, all four eyes being black with no discernible irises. She quickly went from excited to angry as she turned towards the lizard. "What the hell! There's only two of them are here!"

"So let's wrap up before the others show up!" the lizard ordered. "Greyhound!"

"Yeah Komodo?" a lanky, werewolf-looking Bang Baby covered in grey hair asked as he stepped out of the store.

"Keep a nose out for the other Titans!" Komodo ordered. "Tarantella and me are gonna clean out more stores while Serpentine and Darkwing keep the super zeroes busy. Soon as the other Titans show up, you let me know."

"You got it." Greyhound replied as he quickly ran off to take on the role of lookout.

"Come on, Komodo! We can SO take on the Titans!" the spider woman, Tarantella, insisted.

"Yeah, I'll bet that's what Judgement thought." Komodo replied.

"Can't we at least wait until Beast Boy gets here?" Tarantella pleaded. Komodo growled at her. "What? He's cute."

"Move it!" Komodo snarled at the tarantula before running down the corridor into another store. Tarantella hissed at the lizard indignantly before breaking into another store herself.

Static pumped a few hundred volts through his system, shocking Serpentine and forcing the snake woman to slither off of him. She quickly recovered and spat some green goop out of her mouth at him. Static rolled out of the way and onto his feet, smirking at the Bang Baby. "Didn't your mother ever tell you that ladies shouldn't spit?"

Static noticed that the green goop she spat was sizzling and dissolving the floor where it landed. "Especially if it's acidic." Static added.

Serpentine paid him no mind as she continued hocking acidic loogies at the electrical hero, which she could fire with surprising distance, accuracy, and rapidness, forcing him to stay on the move. He zapped some nearby objects and tossed them at her, but she nimbly dodged out of the way as she kept up her barrage. Meanwhile, Starfire had quickly tossed Darkwing off, but the bat took to the air and circled around and lunged at her with his talons. Starfire grabbed them by the ankles and tossed him into a hair salon. He recovered and flew out, inhaled, then screeched.

It was a super-sonic screech that sent ripples through the air and pain into Starfire's ears, forcing her to cover her ears as she yelled in pain. Static saw it and realized that it worked the same as Talon's screech - a focused, hyper-sonic sound wave. It wouldn't be as effective if you weren't in its way, but unfortunately Starfire was. She was stunned by the sonic blast, allowing Darkwing to grab her by the shoulders with his talons and toss her into a PopTV stand, completely destroying it. This left Static to deal with the two meta-humans alone.

Darkwing lunged at the Dakota teen, but Static zapped him right in the chest and knocked him back. He wheeled on Serpentine, his fists crackling with electromagnetic energy. Serpentine reared up on her lower half, raising herself high into the air and making it look like she was twelve feet tall. She rained down more acid loogies on Static, forcing him again to move. He bolted over to the wreckage of the PopTV stand, just as Starfire was starting to come to and climb out of it. Darkwing had recovered himself, and flew over, landing next to Serpentine.

"Don't suppose you got any ideas?" Static asked.

"WHAT?!" Starfire shouted, putting a hand to her ear.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS!" Static shouted back.

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS?!"

"Guess that's a no."

"WHAT?!"

"NEVER MIND! I'LL FOCUS ON DARKWING! YOU TAKE ON SERPENTINE!"

"BUT DUCKLINGS DO NOT STEP IN TIME!"

"AND BREAK!" With that, Static hopped on his saucer and zoomed towards Darkwing, firing a static bolt at the creature and hitting it right in the chest. Correctly assuming that that left Serpentine to her, Starfire flew towards the snake woman to deliver a ferocious punch right to her gut. Serpentine was knocked onto her butt, then quickly slithered away to regain some distance. She reared back up to hock acid loogies at the Tamaranean. Starfire nimbly dodged the loogies and hurled some star bolts in return, putting Serpentine on the run.

Meanwhile, Darkwing was screaming his hyper-sonic screech at Static, but the Dakota teen was able to weave around the focused sound beam. It was something he got plenty of practice doing from fighting Talon. He zapped Darkwing again, knocking him to the ground in a smoking heap. Shaking off the shock, Darkwing reached into his pocket and pulled out a walkie talkie.

"These guys are beatin' us good! We need help over here, jefe!" Darkwing shouted into the walkie-talkie before screeching at Static to get him to back off.

On the other side of the mall, Komodo growled from this update. "Tarantella. Let's go." he ordered. The tarantula meta human crawled up a wall and onto the ceiling, crawling towards the fight. Komodo ran towards the fight as well, finding Static and Darkwing squaring off. He grabbed a nearby hot dog stand, lifted it with his saurian strength, and hurled it at Static. Static saw it coming and ducked out of the way.

Komodo then grabbed one of the indoor trees and pulled it upwards, uprooting it, and then swinging it at the Dakota teen like a club. "Whoa! Lizard man's been workin' out!" he quipped.

"Tarantella! Now!" Komodo barked.

The tarantula leapt from the ceiling where she lied in wait and tackled Static to the ground, sinking her fangs into his neck. Suddenly, Static's whole body below the neck went numb and difficult to move. As he tried desperately to will his suddenly-limp muscles to move, Tarantella began wrapping his body in silk, using the web glands located on the four spidery appendages sprouting from her back. By the time she was done, Static was thoroughly cocooned from the neck down.

"Thanks for the assist." Darkwing said. "Come on, let's go help Serpentine." On that note, Darkwing took to the air to lend the snake girl aid, followed quickly by Tarantella and Komodo, the former once again crawling on the walls. Starfire and Serpentine weren't far away, the latter still dodging and weaving out of the way of star bolts being fired by the former. Komodo was still carrying the small tree he was using as an improvised weapon, and hurled it at the Tamaranean like it was a caber.

Starfire eeped as she saw it coming and dodged it. However, it turned out to be just a distraction. Darkwing lunged at the alien girl with his talons and raked his claws across her arms as she raised them to block, creating the perfect opening for Tarantella to leap onto her and bite her neck, sending the same paralyzing toxin into her system as well. She flopped onto the ground, prompting the tarantula to web her up. With a scoff, she dragged Starfire over to Static, and tossed the hero on top of the other.

"Nice try, Titans." Komodo said with a wide, reptilian grin. "Tell your friends that you just got beat by the Wild Pack!"

"WHAT?!" Starfire shouted. "WE LEEK MILD CRACK?! BUT WE DO NOT DO THE DRUGS!"

"…..Tarantella, web up her mouth too." Komodo ordered. As the spider rolled her eyes and did just that, Komodo's walkie-talkie starting crackling.

"Boss, it's Greyhound. T-Car's comin'!" Greyhound reported.

"You sure?" Komodo asked.

"Barbecue sauce mixed with motor oil. _Definitely _Cyborg's ride." Greyhound said.

"Alright. Get the van ready." Komodo ordered as he turned off the walkie-talkie. "Titans comin'! Let's grab the stuff and go!" he roared as he and Darkwing went over to grab the sacks full of money and other valuables.

"The other Titans are here?" Tarantella asked excitedly. "That means Beast Boy is too! I gotta - "

"Let's go, Juliet." Serpentine hissed as she grabbed the spider and hauled her out of the mall as she slithered after Darkwing and Komodo, Tarantella protesting the whole way.

A minute later, the rest of the Titans found Static and Starfire tied up in spider silk. "What happened?" Robin asked as he tried to undo the silk holding Starfire while Cyborg worked on Static.

"More Bang Babies, that's what happened." Static grumbled.

"WHUFT?!" Starfire shouted, her mouth still muffled by web.

…..

"Okay, you two should be fine." Cyborg said as he examined Static's and Starfire's test results back in the Titans Tower's med bay. "Tarantella's paralysis toxin should be starting to wear off now. Just keep drinking fluids, flushing it all out, and you should be back in fighting shape by tomorrow. How are Star's ears, Rae?"

"Eardrums were damaged, but nothing my healing magic couldn't handle." Raven replied. "Her deafness should fade in an hour or two."

"Didn't know you had healing magic." Static said. For the last twenty minutes or so, Raven had been holding her hands around Starfire's ears, her hands glowing white - not a color that Static would typically associate with Raven.

Raven shrugged. "I know a lot of different spells." she plainly replied.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Robin asked. Starfire blushed.

"Robin! I…..I requested no such thing!" Starfire blurted out.

"Uh….Are you okay?!" Robin said considerably louder.

"Oh." Starfire replied, suddenly embarrassed. "Yes. I am fine. I thought you said something else."

"Just keep her away from any more loud noises tonight, and she'll be fine." Cyborg said.

"Man, you two _really _got your butts kicked." Beast Boy commented with a snicker.

"Hey, we were doin' just fine up until that spider chick jumped us!" Static argued.

"Relax. You were outnumbered and caught by surprise. Even Titans have off days." Robin said. "Speaking of numbers…..the Wild Pack. You mentioned there were five of them."

"Yeah. Seemed like Komodo was their leader." Static replied. "He was running a pretty tight crew. They had walkie-talkies and everything."

"Komodo wasn't just causing random mayhem. He had a plan. Like Judgement did." Robin said as he stroked his chin in thought. "The Bang Babies are becoming more organized, forming their own gangs."

"Yeah, that's what they did in Dakota too." Static replied.

"But Slade said that he _didn't _want the Bang Babies to do that. So….why's he lettin' them do that?" Cyborg asked.

"Hard to say." Robin replied. "Best guess: All the meta-human gangs are all aligned with one another and all work for Slade, as opposed to competing with each other like in Dakota."

"Still doesn't explain why he hasn't got them doing anything big yet." Raven commented.

"One step at a time. At least now we have an idea of how their power structure works, albeit a loose one." Robin replied. He turned to Starfire and Static. "You two try to take it easy for the rest of the day. Titans dismissed."

….

Once Cyborg gave him and Star a clean bill of health, the first thing Static did was head into the bathroom to take another shower. He worked up a sweat fighting the Wild Pack, so he would need to wash it off to minimize BO. He couldn't afford any stank if he was going to be ask Raven out on a date.

Yes, he was still planning on doing that today. Part of him couldn't help but wonder if the timing was right. After all, if you're trying to impress a girl, asking her out fresh on the heels of a defeat wouldn't seem wise. He wondered if, perhaps, he should wait until the next Bang Baby attack, specifically one where he could come off as being more of a bad ass hero. He quickly decided against it, though. It had to be today. Because if not today, then when? He didn't want to be one of those chumps who wait for hypothetical golden opportunities that never come. Carpé Diém! YOLO! In the immortal words of Shia LeBouf, just do it!

Once he was sure he was so clean that Raven could see her reflection in his abs, he brushed his teeth again. And then he used mouthwash. LOTS of mouthwash. He quickly dried his hair and his whole body - couldn't look too wet when asking out Raven. It would make the fact that he showered beforehand obvious, and by proxy his intentions would be obvious.

Wait. Wouldn't Static _want _his intentions to be kinda obvious? Isn't that the whole point of asking someone out on a date?

True. Thing is, you don't want to look too eager. The line between eager and desperate is a thin one. You gotta be nonchalant. Don't even act like it's a thing.

On the other hand, you can't really treat it like it's not even a thing. It's actually a really big thing. You should make a girl feel special, right? A girl can't feel special if you don't treat asking her out like a thing.

Static slapped himself, silencing the debate in his head. _You're way overthinking it, man. _He told himself. _Just dry yourself like you do after every other shower. Be cool. Above all else, be cool._

Breathing to calm himself, Static got dressed in a clean new uniform, triple-checked his reflection, then headed out of the bathroom and down the hall towards Raven's room. He knew Raven well enough to know that if you wanted to know where she was, eight times out of ten, she was in her room. All he had to walk up and knock on her door.

Yup. Just knock on her door.

…..

He's gonna do it. He's totally gonna knock on that door.

…

_Come on, Static. You're seventeen, for crying out loud. You're not in middle school anymore. _Static mentally chastised himself. He took a deep breath and walked away from Raven's door, stopping a few doors down. He started taking deep breaths.

"Okay. I can do this." Static said. "I'm the man. I _am _the man."

He started to phantom box in order to psych himself up. "I'm the man, I'm the man, girl you can tell everybody, I'm the man." He mimed a couple of jabs. "I'm the greatest, I'm a bad man, and I'm pretty! I'm so pretty, I'm so pretty, I'm so pretty!"

…..

"What's he even doing?" Beast Boy asked with a snicker.

"Looks like he's trying to psych himself up." Cyborg replied. He was sitting in the security room, where there were several screens showing the view of several cameras. Cyborg, along with Beast Boy and Starfire, were watching the corridor camera to see the moment they were all waiting for - Static asking out Raven. "He keeps quoting Muhammad Ali to himself."

"Is that similar to my invocations of the War God Kalopnark?" Starfire asked.

"Little bit." Cyborg replied.

"Oh, this is too good." Beast Boy said as he reached into a bowl of popcorn. "I get to make fifty bucks, _and _watch the greatest crash and burn of our generation. Best night ever." He promptly stuffed a handful into his mouth.

"You gonna share those?" Cyborg asked.

…

_Okay. Here we go._ Static thought to himself as he knocked on Raven's door. _I'm the man. I'm the man. I'm the - _

The door opened a crack, revealing half of Raven's very pretty, but also very emotionless face. "What?" she asked.

_\- boy. I'm a little boy who reads comic books and is scared of the doctor and likes grilled cheese sandwiches and oh my God what am I even doing right now._

"…..Sup home girl." Static said the very first thing he could think of with a wide smile. Raven's visible eyebrow raised in reply.

…..

"ShhhhooooooooooBCAHAHCHCHHCHCHCHA!" Beast Boy tried to make the noises of a crash and explosion with his mouth, before doubling over in laughter halfway through.

"Come on, Static!" Starfire said. "Sweep her off her feet!" she paused. "That _is _the expression, yes?"

"Yeah." Cyborg replied.

….

"….Please don't call me that." Raven evenly said.

"Right. Gotcha." Static replied. "So…I checked our patrol schedule and I noticed that you and me got an evening patrol together Monday night. And Starfire told me you liked poetry so, maybe when our patrol is over, you and I could go grab dinner together at this one poetry joint I heard about downtown?"

…

"Here it comes…" Beast Boy excitedly said.

….

"Okay." Raven replied.

"Say what?" Static asked, a little surprised.

…..

"**SAY WHAT?!"** Beast Boy asked, more than just a little surprised. Significantly more in fact, if the flying bowl and popcorn all over the room were any indication.

…

"We don't really know one another that well." Raven said. "And seeing as you're the newest member of the team, we should probably fix that."

"So…it's a date?" Static asked.

"If you want to call it that, sure." Raven replied. With that, the door closed. Static stood there a moment. Shocked. Pardon the pun.

"…..WOO!" Static cheered. "I'm too hot! Hot damn! Call the police and the fireman! I'm too hot! Hot damn! Make a dragon wanna retire man! I'm too hot! Hot damn! Say my name you know who I am!" He sang as he danced, shimmied and moonwalked down the hall back to his room.

…

"Booyah! That's my boy!" Cyborg cheered.

"Glorious!" Starfire cheered as well, clapping her hands in approval. "A new romance has been born!"

"I…..how….but she…and he…what just happened?!" Beast Boy demanded.

"You just lost fifty bucks. _That's _what happened." Cyborg replied.

"But it's Raven! Raven doesn't _date_! She never _dates_!" Beast Boy argued.

"Well, apparently she does." Cyborg replied. "Don't worry, grass stain. You don't have to pay me right now. Although I _will _need the money by Wednesday."

"No. No! This is wrong! This is all wrong! There's something very wrong here!" Beast Boy continued. "Look at me, Cyborg! Am I not green? Am I actually red? Check your reflection, do you suddenly have an afro?"

"What are you talkin' about?" Cyborg asked.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT REAL LIFE IS ANYMORE!" Beast Boy shouted. He paused, wringing his hands and grinding his teeth in anxiety. "DOUBLE OR NOTHING!" he shouted.

"Pardon?" Cyborg asked.

"Hundred bucks says they don't kiss!" Beast Boy clarified.

Cyborg shook his head. "Come on, man. My boy already got a date. Cut your losses."

"He did _not _get a date!" Beast Boy fumed. "All he got was dinner at a poetry place!"

"Sounds like a date to me." Cyborg argued.

"It's not a date! It's totally platonic!" Beast Boy insisted. "You heard Raven. She wants to know Static better. That's _it. _That's _all._ There was no _hint _of her actually being _into_ him."

"Not yet." Cyborg countered.

"We got a bet or not?!" Beast Boy demanded.

Cyborg rolled his eye. "Fine." he said as he shook Beast Boy's hand. "If you're really that eager to lose more money, I won't stop you."

"I won't!" Beast Boy barked. He then got up and stormed out of the room.

"Friend Beast Boy does not seem to approve of Static courting Raven." Starfire observed.

"Ah, don't worry about it. He just betted against Static and now he's being a sore loser." Cyborg said.

"Are you sure it is ethical to wager on someone else's romance?" Starfire asked.

"Ah, don't worry. There's no harm in it." Cyborg replied. "Just a little friendly wager."

"Very well then." Starfire said. "I shall brush up on the teen magazines so that I may coach Static on the date!" she declared before floating out of the room.

Once Cyborg was alone, he shifted the camera view to Beast Boy's room, where the little green bean was angrily pacing back and forth. Cyborg chuckled evilly at sight.

"So it begins….." Cyborg menacingly said.

...

**The Wild Pack were all devised by my cohort Zgamer. Dude's come up with so many Bang Baby OC's that I'm pretty sure he's a mad scientist.**


End file.
